


My Curse to Bare

by Tygermane



Series: My Little Mortal [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast Fusion, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - The Little Mermaid Fusion, Angst, Attempted Sexual Assault, Beauty and the Beast Elements, Comfort, Dark Magic, F/M, Fear, Fear of Death, Female Characters, Female Protagonist, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Interspecies Relationship(s), Kissing, Language Barrier, Little Mermaid Elements, Merman Loki, Merman thor, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Third Person, Pining, Reader-Insert, Reader-Interactive, Slow Burn, Soulmates, Surprise Kissing, Swearing, Tags Are Hard, Tags Contain Spoilers, Tags May Change, Thor (Marvel) is a Good Bro, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, female-male relationship, human reader, kissing is magic, merfolk, mermaid au, possible trigger warning, thor is a flirt, trying to be a slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2019-09-07 00:28:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16843480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tygermane/pseuds/Tygermane
Summary: Mermaid AU featuring our favorite Asgardian Princes!It's centuries after Loki has been cursed, he is now aware of what has happened to him and spends all of his time trying to break the curse that has left him an empty and hollow shell of who he used to be.On his way home, he comes across, what he thinks, is a kelp pattie. Deciding to see what tastey treats might be hiding inside, he is more than surprised to find a raft. Imagine his surprise when he finds a human adrift in his realm.It's been 600 years, since anyone has seen human, and no one had ever been so close to a living one. Now, Loki and Thor must find a way to save her and send her home to her family, while trying to help Loki and discovering who is giving orders in Thor's name and why no one has found a human adrift in 600 years.Will they succeed in sending her back home before anything can happen to her? Will Loki have to resort to using the Dark Magic that forced his curse upon him? Will Thor be able to keep, that he is falling in love with the human from Loki, while Loki is keeping the knowledge that she makes him feel whole, from Thor? Will they all get their perfect, Disney, happily ever after?Only one way to find out!!





	1. First Impressions

**Author's Note:**

> 12/11/18 changed a good portion of this chapter.
> 
> Story is told in 3rd person POV.
> 
> Please make sure to read the previous work, which is essentially the prologue, to understand what happened to Loki, and why he's in the condition he's in.

A few days passed before Loki woke up again. He opened his eyes and looked around, slightly confused when he realized he was laying on his bed in the palace. He finally realized, nothing looked right, colors that used to be bright and vibrant, now looked dull and lifeless, he still felt hollow like something was missing and there was a slight chill in the water. He didn't remember everything feeling this cold. He tried to think back to what happened between him and his father, he couldn't remember the words that were spoken, only the sadness on his father's face before he placed a hand over his heart.

“Brother! You're awake!” Thor beamed when he swam into Loki's room and saw him sitting up in his bed.

“Thor? What am I doing here? What happened?” He asked, his voice a little rougher than usual.

“In good time brother. How are you feeling?” Thor asked, setting next to Loki on his bed.

“Still a little tired and like I was tossed around by a family of whales.” Thor let out a small chuckle.

“Father said you might feel that way.”

“Where is father? I need to speak with him.”

“He's gone Loki.” Thor replied, Loki missing the look of sadness on Thor's face.

“When will he be back?” Loki asked, lying back down in his bed, eyes closed.

“He won't. Don't you remember what happened?”

“Everything's a little fuzzy and cloudy. I remember he said something, then placed his hand here.” Loki said, moving his hand over his heart, “Then nothing but excruciating pain.”

Thor let out a heavy sigh, “Laufey tried kill to you, Loki.” Loki shot up, staring at Thor in disbelief. “He used the last of his life force to kill you as a punishment for father. Father wasn't going to let Laufey kill you and it hit him instead. He's gone.” Thor was more somber than Loki had ever seen him before.

“Why would Laufey want to kill me after spending decades training me?” Loki asked, realizing Thor's explanation wasn't making sense.

“He was using you. He was angry with our father for keeping you and raising you.” Thor sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, “There's no easy or gentle way to say this. Loki, Laufey is........no, was your biological father.”

“WHAT! How was that monster my father?” he asked, the look in his eyes, pleading for Thor to admit it was some kind of sick joke.

“Come, lets get you some food and I'll tell you everything.” Thor said, pushing himself off Loki's bed and offering him his hand. Loki looked at the offered hand, then at his brother, who just smiled at him. Knowing Thor would tell him nothing if he didn't agree, Loki had no choice. Despite how betrayed and angry he felt, he took Thor's hand and followed him to the dinning hall.

After eating and listening to Thor explain everything, Loki retreated to the library. He needed to find any information about what happens when to someone who should have been killed by a death spell that hit an unintended target.

Centuries later, the dark prince was still searching for any information on his condition. He had moved out of the palace and into a home on the outskirts of the royal city. Thor still gave him full access to the library and still went to him for advice and council, but Loki had all but locked himself away, consumed with trying to find out any information on his condition.

He had heard about an old sorceress in another city who was older than his father or mother would be, were either of them still alive. He had gone to see her in the hopes that she would be able to tell him about his current condition. She just laughed at him and said give up his quest and just enjoy life. Loki could tell she knew exactly what was wrong with him, he even called her out on it. All she told him, was that no one would be able to explain his condition, not because the didn't want to, but they physically wouldn't be able to. Anyone who continued to try, would have their tongue turn to dust. 

What she wanted to tell him was that it wasn't a spell that did this to him, but a curse. And this particular curse was unbreakable. It wasn't the spirits that decided the penance, but the soul itself. It would be the other half of Loki's soul that would decide when it was time to return, if it ever decided to return. If the soul decided never to return, Loki would remain, indefinitely. He would watch everyone he ever knew and loved, live long and happy lives, watch them grow old and die surrounded by those who loved them. But not Loki, he would remain, cursed to swim the tides for all eternity, eventually becoming insane, losing the other half of his soul, forgetting who he ever was and becoming an immortal monster of the deep. She wanted to him to forget about his condition and concentrate on trying to woo back his other half.

He was on his way back home, thinking about her words, when a shadow passed over him. With the ocean and land realms being separated, it was very rare for anything to float on the surface. Over the centuries, he had discovered that, occasionally, a doorway between the two realms would open randomly. It was always a fixed position in his realm, but when it opened on the land realm, it was random. When the doorway was open for an extended length of time, sometimes, a kelp patty would find it's way through. This was the closest to joy he ever felt, as there was always something delicious hiding in the kelp, so he always made it a point to visit the area he knew the gateway to be. On occasion, he would even share with Thor.

Feeling rather hungry after swimming such a distance from the old woman's home, he looked around to make sure no one was around, before swimming towards the patty to see what might be hiding inside. The closer he got, the less it looked like a kelp patty and the more it looked like floating debris. Being curious by nature, he continued making his way towards the patty. Upon closer inspection, this was like no patty he had ever seen before, it was a horrid orange color with one large white stripe on each of the sides, there were no leaves, and definitely no delectable creatures hiding within. Curious about the texture, he cautiously extended a finger and poked it. Poking it a few more times, certain it wasn't some unknown sea creature lying in wait to attack him, he put both hands on it. It was like nothing he'd ever felt before. The skin was similar to that of a shark, rough and almost leathery, but not really leathery. He had no idea how to describe it, this was something new and could only have come from the world of mortals. He swam around the entire perimeter, noting that it was exactly the same all the way around, before he ventured underneath, still running his hand along it, feeling the texture and what he could only assume were some sort of decorative markings. They were firm and stiffer than the rest of the object. He thought they might be some kind of boning to protect it from attack. He thought it odd that in the center, it hung lower in the water and the shape was rather lumpy and round. Considering how uniform the rest of the object was, this didn't make sense. He took a few minutes to ponder what it could possibly be, before placing both hands on it and giving a slight push. He heard a muffled scream and watched as it changed shape and moved. Now, instead of one large round mass in the middle, there were four, two smaller and two that were long and thin. They kept moving about and making strange muffled noises. He knew before the curse, this would have really got his blood pumping and excited, now, he felt nothing. There was no joy in his new discovery, no excitement, nothing, just empty curiosity.

Wanting to know what it looked like above the water, he swam to one of the sides, keeping most of his body underneath the large mass, he cautiously peeked out from underneath it, his eyes went wide when he saw a face staring back at him. He quickly ducked back under the creature's belly, watching as the shapes began moving around making strange noises again. Not wanting to risk an attack from it's head, and since it hadn't tried to alter it's position or attack him, he swam to the opposite side. He couldn't help but feel slightly irritated and angry with the situation, he knew he should be feeling excited and his heart should be racing, but with being cursed, all he could feel were negative emotions, and he hated it.

He heard a the creature emit a high pitched squeal and couldn't help his curiosity, he watched again as the shapes began to move towards where he had seen the head. Deciding the creature was distracted with where he had been, he took advantage of the distraction and poked his head out of the water, not being able to see above the creatures sides, he placed a hand on what he thought was it's backside. Satisfied that the creature wouldn't turn and attack him, he pulled himself up and looked over the edge, quickly realizing that it wasn't a creature at all, but it held a creature. He stared in confusion at what he assumed was it's backside, wanting to get a closer look and not wanting to draw the creature's attention, he slowly and cautiously, pulled himself up and over the side. With most of his tail hanging over the edge and one hand supporting him, he began to reach out to the odd looking appendage in front of him, wanting so badly to touch it. Looking up, to make sure it was still distracted, he was surprised when he saw it looking back at him. Both frozen, as they made eye contact and their brains tried to process what they were seeing, Loki quickly pulled his hand away as the creature let out a shrill scream and began flailing about. He rolled his eyes as it fell over the side and splashed into the water. Allowing himself to glide back into the water, he watched as the creature flailed in the ocean, creating too many bubbles in it's struggle, not allowing him to see clearly what it was. He watched as it tried to climb back inside, screaming as it did. If this thing wasn't careful, it was going to draw the attention of a guard, and then he'd never get to examine it while it was still alive. With a huff, he swam over and underneath it, trying to be cautious of it's flailing limbs, he put his hands on what he hopped was some part of it's body and used a little magic to help push it back in the floating contraption. He heard more screaming by the creature, climbing over the side like he had done earlier, he shook his head as he watched it try to scurry away from him. Irritated beyond belief with it, he used more magic to silence it and hold it still.

“I swear, if you don't stop making such a commotion, you're going to draw the attention of the guard and my oafish brother, and I'll never get a good look at you. Now hold still and be silent.” He growled, satisfied that his magic was doing it's part. With his current condition, he was nowhere near as powerful as he was before, but he had still more than the average sorcerer.

“What are you?” He asked, as he allowed himself to slide into the contraption. He normally wouldn't allow himself to get this close to something new, especially out of the water. But with it being restrained by his magic, and how easily it will be to slide right back into the water, he felt the risk was worth it.

He took his time looking the creature over, assessing it for any threats, it had no claws, appeared to have no sharp teeth, but it definitely had the biggest, ugliest eyes he'd ever seen! It knew it was scared, could smell the fear rolling off it, he wasn't sure if the rapid breathing was normal or because it was scared, he assumed it was the former. Looking at it, he could have sworn it had more appendages before falling in the water, now, it appeared to only have two on it's lower half.

“Will you calm down, I'm not going to hurt you!” He hissed, irritated that it was breathing so heavily.

He reached out and poked one of it's lower appendages. He gasped, feeling a small jolt run through his finger, he quickly pulled his hand back. He stared at the creature in front of him, curious how it shocked him. The only thing he knew that emitted a shock like that, were jellyfish, but this creature was much to solid to be a jellyfish.

Curious if he would feel a second jolt, he reached out again and touched the same spot. Nothing, though the creature did try to flinch away, he assumed that meant it must have felt the jolt as well. He sighed as he saw it's muscles continue to contract as if it was trying to get way from him.

“It's magic, you won't be able to move. Like I said, I'm not going to hurt you, so just calm down.” He said, looking in it's grotesque eyes. Deciding he was more curious about it's hideous face, than it's lower half at the moment, he pulled himself closer to it. Watching as it's eyes got bigger and the breathing quicker as it struggled in the magic binding.

“You are a curious looking thing aren't you? Has the Kingdom above the Sea really changed so much since we left it?” He asked, grabbing it's face and turning it to the side. 

“You're eyes are absolutely disgusting! What would cause them to develop in such a way?” he asked, touching the side, not wanting to hurt the creature, at least not to much.

“Interesting, you have hair, but then why has this piece of skin grown over it in such a way? Were you injured some how? A birth defect, perhaps?” He asked, running his finger along the odd band.

“Wait, it's not a part of you. A covering for your eyes? How intriguing!” He said, turning the creatures face and forcing it look directly at him.

Tapping the odd material, a slight smirk as the creatures eyes flinched. His curiosity really was getting the better of him, he, not so gently, pulled the eye coverings up and off the creature's face. More intrigued by the coverings than the creature at the moment, after turning them over a few times in his hands and tugging on the odd band, he held them up to his face and looked through them just as the creature had done. He heard an odd sound come from the creature, still holding the coverings to his face, he looked at it. It looked as though it was trying not to laugh at him, smiling as it bit it's lower lip.

“No. You can't be. It's been centuries.” he said, lowering the coverings, astonished that the creature in front of him was a mortal. A human.

With a wave of his hand, the magic bindings released. Still in shock, he didn't hear what she said, just watched as she stretched her limbs and made herself comfortable in front of him. He couldn't believe it, had humans found a way into the realm? Had his father's spell been undone? No, he'd have felt it if it had. The only way it could have gotten here was from one of the gateways, most likely, by accident.

Then that meant, he was in the human's ship, looking at it again, it was the oddest ship he had ever seen, it wasn't even made of wood, he wondered what kind of creature they had used to make it. The ship had no apparent way to propel itself, no sail to catch the wind, so did it just rely on the currents to carry it, is that how it ended up in his ocean?

Turning his attention back to the creature, he hadn't even realized it had been talking to him, it's hands moving about animatedly, the curiosity and fascination in his blue-green eyes. The coverings this human wore were so much different than what he remembered them wearing. They seemed lighter and there was definitely less of them. His eyes roamed the humans body a little more, he never could tell the males from the females. Though gauging from the higher pitch in it's voice, the more fair facial features, he felt pretty confident in his assumption that this one was female or, quite possibly, a very young male. He was amazed at how much this female could talk, she'd been talking since the binding had been released. He'd always thought human females could never speak, not that he'd ever seen one before, and definitely, not this close. This was the closest he'd ever been to a human.

He was brought out of his thoughts when she jumped and attacked him. Startled by the light shock she sent through him, he pushed her off and away, then pulled himself back into the water, swimming away as fast as he could. Hearing a splash, he stopped.

 _Have the mortals developed gills?_ He thought, turning around to see her swimming towards him, strange, gurgling sounds coming from her. _Of course it's still talking!_

He watched as she stopped, her hand covering her mouth as she quickly swam back towards the surface. What amazed him wasn't the fact that she could swim, though he was surprised. No, it was the way she swam, she used her lower limbs in the same manner he does. She didn't use them separately, like all the drowning humans he had seen. She used them as if they were her tail. She was oddly graceful in her swimming and he could almost imagine her having a tail. Forgetting about the little shock she had given him, he swam back to her, watching as she broke the surface, her limbs once again moving individually. He wasn't that surprised to hear her gasping when his head breached the surface.

“So that's what the coverings are for, they allow you to see under water. You mortals sure have gotten clever over the centuries.” he smirked as he watched her remove them from her face.

He was shocked to see her smiling at him again, her eyes sparkling and so alive. He had never seen eyes so bright and vivid. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen such beautiful colors, he never wanted to stop looking at them, they were mesmerizing.

The trance she had him under was broken when she made some odd squealing noise and started talking again. He rolled his eyes and they landed on her ship, behind her. A good distance behind her. With the speed of the current, he was pretty sure if she didn't swim for it now, she'd never catch up to it. He tried to draw her attention to it, looking at it, pointing, but she was so busy talking, she didn't notice. He let out an irritated huff, put one hand on the top of her head, the other on her shoulder and turned her around, forcing her to look in that direction and, much to his relief, silencing her. Though it didn't last long, she made another odd squealing noise and began swimming towards her ship. He was intrigued by the way she swam this time, not like a fish, but again, moving each limb separately, he was surprised at the speed. She would never be able out-swim him like that, but it was still somewhat impressive. Quickly realizing that without his help, she would never catch her vessel, he shrugged his shoulders and began his journey back home.

What was one more dead mortal to him?


	2. My Hero!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting the king is a pretty big deal, or at least, it would be, if you knew that's who he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 12/11/18 as of the original posting of this chapter, chapter 1 has had a pretty big update. I changed a lot, mostly in the flashback in the beginning of the chapter, but a few things throughout the entire chapter.

_I don't want to die._

Thor was lounging on his bed, when he felt a disturbance in the water. It wasn't something he could ever remember feeling, but, at the same time, it was familiar. He closed his eyes and focused on the sensation. His eyes shot open as the realization set in. Distress. There was some creature that needed help and was calling out for it. With out a second thought, Thor swam as fast as he could in the direction the sensation was pulling him.

Loki could see his small home in the distance, relief was setting in, when there was a sharp, intense pain in his chest. He clutched his chest, feeling as if the oxygen in his aquatic lungs was being forced out, he let out scream. It was a pain he hadn't felt in centuries, and one he would never forget. It was the same pain he felt the night his father broke his soul. The pain nowhere near what it had been that night, but unmistakably the same. Gasping once the pain became tolerable, he looked down at his chest, seeing a familiar glow.

“No, it can't be.” he whispered. “How? How is this possible?” He asked himself.

Before he could think any more on it, he was pulled from his thoughts by a rush of water. Looking in the direction it had gone, he realized it was the same direction in which he had left the mortal. Thinking for a moment, he realized the rush he felt must have been Thor. Which meant he had sensed the mortal. Loki just rolled his eyes, and without a second thought, continued his way back home.

Thor thought it odd when he came upon a bright orange floating....... something. He touched it, could sense the remnants of distress coming off it, but it wasn't the source. He thought it odd that this is where the sensation would lead him. Eyes still closed, he tried to feel for the sensation again. It didn't take long, the sensation was stronger than when he had felt it earlier.

He swam so he was behind the strange object and began to push it in the direction the stronger distress sensation was coming from. He swam a good distance before he felt the object bump into something. He heard coughing and sputtering, along with splashing on the other side of the object. Then, all of a sudden, that distressed feeling was gone, or, almost gone, anyway. He had found the source and he smiled.

Letting go, he swam to the opposite side of the object, his eyes went wide at what he saw. Flailing limbs. There was only one creature he knew of with limbs like those. Humans. It was the first human he had seen in centuries.

Feeling a sense of gratitude coming from the human and seeing it struggle to try and pull itself into the object, he decided to help it. With the wave of his hand, a small column of water, encircled the lower limbs of it and set it on the edge of, what Thor now assumed, was some sort of small boat. He smiled when he heard high pitched noise it made at being lifted onto the side of the small boat. His smile quickly faded when he saw tears falling down it's face, so using his connection with the ocean, as king, he raised himself so he could be eye level with the human.

A soft smile graced his lips at noticing the fair and feminine features of it's face. He then raised his hand, cupped it's cheek and brushed away a falling tear. It's eyes went wide when they fell on him, they gave him a quick once over, before it flung itself at him and wrapped it's arms around his neck. He could feel the gratitude radiating off of it as it began to cry and mumble into the crook of his neck, so he wrapped his arms around it's waist, returning the gesture, hoping to convey some comfort to the small human.

Going over his books, again, Loki began to feel a warm pulse deep in his chest, looking down, he saw warm glow. Then he remembered the glow followed by pain, from earlier, he was certain the two instances were connected, how could they not be. Then he remembered the mortal. Perhaps she was the cause of these strange feelings. They didn't start until she appeared after all. Assuming the warmth he was feeling wasn't because she had died and passed on to the next realm, he decided he had better pay her another visit. Get to the bottom of what, exactly, it was she was doing to him.

Thor couldn't help by smile at the little mortal, he had no idea what it was saying, he was just glad to see it smile and wipe away the tears. He began to panic when it stopped talking and the tears started to well in it's eyes again, before they could fall, it wrapped it's arms around his neck and clung to him as if it's life depended on it. With the gentle features, he couldn't help but wonder if the human was a young male, or a female. He was beyond delighted to feel the all too familiar squish against his chest, and there was no question, this little mortal was definitely female.

“Now, now, little mortal, there's no need to cry any more. You're safe, back in your tiny ship.” He smiled as he gently pushed her back and wiped her tears for her. He smiled at her and she smiled back.

“You are a cute, little mortal, aren't you?” he beamed, sitting on the edge of her tiny ship so he could be eye level with her. “Now, how about we do something to make that smile bigger and the tears to go away?” He thought a moment, then he thought of his father, “ Ah, I know! My father used to do this with my brother and I when we were sad, it never failed to cheer us up.” He said, being lifted from the side of the raft with a wave of his hand. He smiled as her face lit up when the water lifted him up and laughed at the excited tone in her voice. He still had no idea what she was saying, but he assumed it was something about his little water trick.

“If you liked that, then you should love this!” with the flick of his wrist, he laughed, as she let out a squeal of delight when she, too, was picked up by a wave of water. Another flick of his wrist had the tube of water rising high in the air, and turning itself into a spiral, which she slid down and into her tiny ship. Thor couldn't contain his laughter as she screamed and laughed the entire way down. He smiled at her as she lay there laughing. Once her laughter began to subside, she opened her eyes and looked up at him, still laying in her tiny ship. As she sat up, her smile turned sad, not wanting her to be sad, he lowered himself back onto the side of her tiny ship. She began to talk and, oh, how he so desperately wished he could understand her language. He wondered what she was talking about when she looked up at the stars and pointed before wiping away the unshed tears from her eyes.

“Please don't cry, little mortal. You are so much more enchanting when you laugh and smile.” the tone of his voice soft and concerned

Hearing him say something, she looked up at him. Not sure if it was because she understood him or not, but she said something as she shook her head and wiped away the rest of her tears. Smiling up at him, the tone of her voice changed, she sounded happier. He still had no idea what she was talking about, but enjoyed watching her get more animated as she continued. Allowing his tail to slide back into the water, so just his chest and arms were leaning over the side of her boat. He continued to watch her as he rest his head in his palm, while restimg there, content on listening to the sound of her voice.

When she paused for a minute, appearing to think about what she was going to say next, he decided to take the opportunity to say something to her.

“I have no idea what you're saying, but you definitely have me under your spell, my little land siren.” He hummed, poking her nose with one of his fingers. He smiled, watching her face turn red as she covered her nose, shying away from him a little bit.

“You are even more adorable when you're being shy. Mmmmm, I wonder if you would let me steal a kiss from those enchanting lips of yours?” Thor asked, knowing she couldn't understand him. Then a thought crossed his mind. Not saying a word, he smiled at her and beckoned her to come closer with his finger. As if she knew what he was asking, she shook her head and began scooting away from him.

“I will follow you into your tiny ship, my little land siren.” He crooned. She smiled as she bit her lower lip, scooting further away, it was almost as if she was daring him to follow her. “I warned you.” Thor smiled, as he allowed himself to slide into her tiny ship and reached for one of her lower limbs. He laughed as she gasped when his hand wrapped around the lower part of it and pulled her closer. Pining half of her underneath him, folding his arms across her belly and resting his hands on them, he just smiled and watched as she tried to push him off of her. He laughed and shook his head when she gave up, panting at clearly having over exerted herself. Looking down at him, she spoke as she poked him in the forehead, then apparently, having said what she wanted to say, she let her arms and head fall back, resting against the bottom of her tiny ship again.

He just watched her for a few moments, then, tapped her belly with a finger, to get her attention. When she looked up at him, he sat himself up, then pulled her into a sitting position as well. She looked completely confused when he touched his lips, then touched hers. He smiled when she mirrored the action, then did it a few more times. He knew she understood when there was that sudden inhale of breath and her eyes got wide and she turned that adorable shade of red again. She said something, that almost sounded like a question, as the inflection of her voice got higher towards the end of what she had said to him. He couldn't be too sure, since she also sounded very surprised when she figured out what he was asking.

His smile became for flirtatious as he nodded and made the motion of touching his lips, then hers, again. He watched, delighted, as the redness on her cheeks continued to deepen, as she spoke, he eyes darting between him and the bottom of her boat. He wondered what she was mumbling, though he was sure she was having a conversation with herself about weather or not to kiss him, as she looked up and looked him right in the eye, speaking louder now as she gave a nod.

His beamed at her confirmation and was about to pull her towards him, when she held up a finger, and with a stern look on her face, she spoke again. He loved how animated and how expressive she could be when she spoke. He watched her take a deep breath as she got to her knees, looking up to the stars, she spoke again. Thor followed her gaze, wondering who she was talking to, but his attention was brought back to her when she let out a sigh and began to lean towards him.

He could feel his heart racing. He was about to kiss a human! Not to mention, a very pretty human at that. Remembering the love stories his mother used to tell, he couldn't help but wonder if she had ever kissed a human. Thor was more excited in that moment than he could ever remember being. Kissing a human was something he'd wanted to do ever since he was a child, and now he was getting the chance to live out that fantasy. Taking a deep breath, to calm his nerves, he placed a hand against her cheek, the other on the floor of her ship, as he leaned in.

He was not expecting her lips to be so soft and warm when she met his. It also allowed him to inhale her scent more deeply. It was something completely new, and not an odor he would soon forget. He had never smelled anything as sweet, there was also a hint of something floral. It reminded him of trips he used to take with his mother during the warmer months, to where the ocean met land. He could remember the smells that the wind would carry out to see, though he had no idea what they were. But he wanted to, now more than ever.

Moving his hand to the back of her head, he wasn't ready for the kiss to be over. He tilted his head, and as if wanting the same thing, she tilted her head in the opposite direction. Breaking a part for just a moment, he opened his eyes, only to be met with the most beautiful blue-green he had ever seen, it was as if she held the entire ocean in her eyes and when she smiled, he knew, whatever she wanted of him, would be hers.

The second time their lips met, was even more exhilarating than the first. Thor couldn't stop the groan that escaped when her fingers laced through his hair. Kissing her was so different than any mer. It was, well, he didn't know how to explain it, there were no words, other than it felt alive. He wanted more contact with her, so he wrapped his other arm around her waist and pulled her against him. The sensations she sent jolting through his body, when her tongue met his, were almost too much for him. Thor knew of no one who kissed like this and couldn't help but wonder where she learned it from and what other wonders she could show him. He wanted more of her, had to have more of her.

“Having a good time, brother?” Thor jerked away from her, panting ever so slightly, when he heard his brother's voice.

“Loki, what are you doing here?” he asked, nervously, when he saw the glare on his brother's face.

“I could ask you the same thing. Isn't this kind of thing beneath the King.”

“Well, perhaps if you had waited a little before interrupting, yes.” he replied, with a cocky smirk.

“You're disgusting.” he growled.

“Oh, come on, it was a joke!”

They both looked at you with your exasperated speech. You were glaring and pointing at Loki, then they looked back at each other.

“She looks angry. Do you have any idea what she's saying?” Thor asked, smiling and nodding at you as you kept gesturing to his brother.

“I have no idea. Clearly the language of the mortals has evolved into something so much different. It doesn't even sound the same, it's like it's less barbaric, less primal. It seems to flow off the tongue much more eloquently.”

“Yes, it does.” Thor smiled as he stared up at the little mortal, nodding every time she looked at him.

“How do you suppose she got here? Father separated our two realms centuries ago.” Thor hummed, his head now resting on her lower limbs once she had sat down, while she twirled a few strands of his hair in her fingers, an irritated look on her face while she stared Loki.

Loki's blood began to boil with jealousy. This was his mortal, he'd found it first. How dare Thor act so friendly with it.

“Wait, did you say she?” Loki asked, curious how Thor came to that conclusion.

“Mmmhmmm.”

“How can you tell? It's all covered up.” Loki asked, irritated that he even had to ask.

“She has breasts.” Thor said, tapping his own chest.

“You saw them?” Loki asked, sounding a little more inquisitive than he had meant.

“No, she embraced me and I felt them then. They are very soft and squishy. Most enjoyable.”

“Brother, stop. I think I might actually get sick if you keep talking like that about it.” Loki said, covering his eyes with his hand.

He heard Thor grumble something, and when he looked up to see what it was about, he was shocked to see the little mortal staring at him, her face contorted in worry. Loki furrowed his brows when she placed the back of her hand to his forehead.

“What is it doing?” Loki asked.

Now laying on his stomach, so he could watch the interaction, Thor chuckled and said, “I think she's worried about you. You do look a little paler than usual.” Thor teased.

“Make it stop.” Loki said, pushing her hand away.

“Believe me, brother, if I could make her ignore you, I would.” Thor smiled as he watched her sit back down, crossing her lower limbs as she did. The smile quickly left when he saw how her entire body shivered as a light breeze blew by. He watched her say something, then move closer to the side of her ship that a small structure seemed to be built upon. A concerning thought occurred to him as he watched her bring her lower limbs in close and wrap her arms around them.

“Brother, what are we going to do with her? I fear if we leave her here, she will get too cold. Look at how she shivers.”

“That is it's problem, not ours. Now come on, it's getting late, you should get back before the guards think you're missing and go searching for you.”

“Oh, let them look. Can't you cast an enchantment over her to keep her warm through the night?” Thor asked, wishing there was some way he could stop her from shivering.

“If I do, will you go home?” Loki glared at Thor as he just sat there and stared at her.

“Thor, it's not a pet, you can't keep it.”

“I know, Loki. I just can't help it. Seeing her like this, makes me think of mother.” Thor sighed.

“Mother?” Loki was almost appalled that such a pathetic creature could make anyone think of their mother.

“Yes, it reminds me of the stories she used to tell us when we were children. About how, since they are so much weaker than us, we should protect them if we find them lost at sea.”

“But it's a human! You know how destructive they are! All they know how to do is kill!” dumbfounded at what Thor was saying.

“You don't still blame them for mother's death, do you?”

Loki let out a heavy sigh, he wanted to continue blaming them, but knowing the truth, he couldn't, though some part of him still harbors resentment for the humans.

“No, I don't.”

“Look at her Loki, does she look like the destructive monster you've made her kind out to be?”

He didn't want to, but Loki looked at her. She was watching him and Thor, a sad smile gracing her lips and she looked as if she was going to cry again. Loki winced when he felt a slight twinge in his chest.

“Loki?” Thor asked.

“I'm fine, just a ghost pain.” He brushed Thor's concern off, then looked back at the little mortal. It really didn't look like a heartless murderer. It looked fragile, it looked tired, it looked worn out, it looked weak, and though it tried to hide it, she looked scared.

“Please, Loki. Let's help her, for Mother?”

“That was a cheap trick.” Loki growled.

“No trick, Loki, you know if mother were here, she'd help her, with no second thoughts. Even if they were the ones who killed her, she'd still want us to help them. Remember how she said not all humans are alike, each one different, just like us.”

“Fine!” Loki hissed, “but when I do, we're leaving.”

They looked at the little mortal as she said something and seemed to be waving them off, Loki was pretty sure he knew what she was saying, he recognized that sad, defeated look on her face. It was the same one he woke up with every day.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and said a few quiet words. When he opened them, her eyes were closed and she didn't seem to be shivering any more. She seemed more relaxed, somehow, which he realized, he also felt. His chest didn't seem to feel quite so tight and he almost felt warmer. Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he turned back to Thor. 

“All right, I did what you asked, now let's go.” Loki said, reaching for Thor's hand.

“Thank you, Loki, but just give me a few more minutes. I just want to watch her sleep. I've never seen one sleep.”

“You've never seen one alive.” Loki smirked

“You know what I mean! Can we just sit here a little longer with her. Who knows how far away she'll drift tonight, or when we'll get a chance to see another human this close.”

Though he was loathe to admit it, Loki did want to stay and watch her a little longer. She was a peculiar creature.

They both watched as she fell deeper into sleep, her body sliding down the side of the tiny ship and stretching out, no longer feeling the need to curl into a tight ball to conserve heat. Loki was utterly disgusted when she rolled onto her back and began to snore. Thor just laughed at the horrible noises coming from his little, land siren. Giving her one last look, they both slipped back into the ocean and began the swim back to the palace.

“Thank you, Loki.” Thor smiled warmly as his brother.

“What for?” Loki asked, completely ignoring the look his brother was giving him.

“For helping her. I know mother would be very proud of you for it. Father too.”

Without saying a word, Loki ignored Thor and swam faster, wanting to lock himself in his home, go back to his books and forget he ever met the mortal.


	3. No better way to understand each other

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The following morning, the little mortal is found adrift by a trio of overly curious guards. Which does not bode well for our lost, little human.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to put a trigger warning here just to be safe. As innocent as the action of the guards may be, it still could be taken as an attempt at sexual assault/harassment. The POV is in 3rd person, so I'm not sure if that helps or not, and I don't go into too much detail, but I wanted to put the warning out there, just in case.

The trio of mermen couldn't believe what they were seeing. It was definitely a first for all of them.

“I think it's a human!” said the young guard, Jorah.

“How can you tell?” Asked another, Kai.

“The weird looking not-tail things on the lower half of it's body. My dad says humans look just like us, expect for their lower half.” Jorah said.

“Keep your voices down, or you might wake it.” the third guard, Roan, said.

They had no idea how long the creature had been drifting on the open sea. By the time it woke, the sun was already high in the sky. Stretching as it let out a large yawn, then stared at the sky for a few more minutes before it sat up. The movement made the trio nervous, so as it sat up, it was met with a spear pointed to the face. It's eyes quickly met with the owner of said spear, as it slowly put it's hands in the air.

Hearing voices behind her, she looked to see two more mermen poking the side of the raft with the tips of their spears. Kai held his spear up to the human as it turned, it's expression full of fear and worry. It said something to him and Roan, while flailing it's arms about. They didn't understand. The tone of it's voice sounding somewhat distressed. The three mermen just looked at each other, confusion clearly written on their faces.

“I don't think it's a threat. It has no claws, no sharp teeth, and I don't see any weapons that it could use against us.” Roan said, lowering his spear from the side of the human's floating contraption.

“Is this it's ship? I thought they would be bigger from the stories we were always told.” Jorah pondered. “What is it made of? I've never felt anything like it.” He continued, running his fingers cautiously over the material.

“It's been a centuries since our realms have been separated, do you think they have a means to journey to others and the materials are from a creature from one of those other realms?” Kai asked, running his hands along the strange material, as well.

“I don't know, but it's a hideous color! What do you think the realm is like with creatures that color? And why use it for a ship? Especially since the color is so easily seen?” Jorah asked.

“We need to tell King Thor, right away! A mortal in his realm can not be a good omen!” Kai said to the others, a slight feeling of panic and unease setting in at the thought of what a human in their realm could mean. They were on a routine patrol, when they had noticed the round object floating above.

“I will go get him. Make sure it stays here and doesn't continue to drift.” The merman, Roan said. He had been silently pondering the questions his companions had asked, then disappeared beneath the water.

The other two just stared at the human, never having seen one before. They hadn't been born when King Odin had separated the two realms and cursed the Dark Prince.

“Do you think it's a male or a female?” Jorah asked, staring at the odd creature curiously as it seemed to hug it's lower extremities closer to it's body, watching them very carefully. They had heard it speak a few times, but ignored it, not understanding what it was saying.

“I don't know. How do you even tell them apart?” Kai asked, staring at the human in the boat, who just sat there, staring back at them, a slight look of fear in it's eyes.

“My dad says, they're gender-less monstrosities and they reproduce by cutting off a piece of themselves and it becomes their baby.” Jorah offered.

“That's gross and doubtful. But look at it, it's kind of pretty, I bet it's female.” Kai smiled.

“Kai, you just want it to be female so you can fantasize about it later.” Jorah teased.

“Come on, Jorah, you're telling me, that if it wasn't female, you wouldn't be curious about what's underneath her coverings? I mean, look at her chest, I'm pretty sure I read some where that human females have breasts, just like our females.” Kai looked at his companion skeptically.

“How do we know it isn't the males that have the breasts?” Jorah asked.

“Because, in almost every species, it's the females who are the nurturers, breasts provide food for the young. Therefore, since it has breasts, that makes her female. A very pretty female.” Kai said, a smile growing on his lips as he looked back to the human in the strange craft.

“I guess we should confirm our suspicions. It wouldn't do to give the King an inaccurate report.”

“Not to mention, who knows when we'll get to see one again, let alone, be this close to it.” Kai said, issuing a silent command for the water wrapped around him, to take him closer to the raft.

“Be careful, Kai, we don't know how dangerous she is.” Jorah warned.

“She looks pretty helpless to me. Look, no claws, barbs or tentacles anywhere. Humans have to use weapons, otherwise, they're defenseless and I don't see any hear, do you?” Kai asked, reminding Jorah of their earlier observation.

“But she could have teeth.” Jorah cautioned.

“Then keep your spear pointed at her, so she can't use them on me.” He smirked, looking back at his companion, who didn't take his eyes off the human.

“Are you sure we shouldn't just wait for King Thor?” Jorah asked, furrowing his brow, his gut twisting with uncertainty.

“He's probably going to bring the Dark Prince with him to take care of her, given his blood lust for humans, we may never know. Besides, humans don't have feelings, they're like any other animal, they survive on pure instinct. This is probably the only opportunity we'll ever have to be this close to one. Nobody has seen them since the separation. I don't know about you, but I, for one, am not going to let this opportunity pass me by.” he said, leaning over the side of the craft and reaching for one of the humans non-tails. He chuckled when she pulled away, twisting away from him, keeping both arms wrapped her.

“She's scared.” Jorah said, getting closer to the craft, so he was next to his companion.

“Impossible, my father says they're fearless creatures.” Kai hummed.

“Perhaps that's just the males? You know, when they're defending their territory or pods?” Jorah replied.

“That would make sense. Now come on, be ready with that thing, just in case she does try to bite me. For all we know, the females have a poisonous bite.”

Kai waited for Jorah to point his spear at the human. He watched her stiffen and the look of fear become even more clear on her face. Kai took her distraction with the spear, as an opportunity to grab one of her non-tails and pull her towards him. He was surprised at the squeal she let out, when he pulled her across the bottom of her craft.

“Ok, that was the cutest noise I've ever heard. Definitely wasn't expecting that.” He chuckled.

“I didn't see any sharp teeth either.” Jorah said, looking down at Kai, who had both hands wrapped around the lower part of her non-tails, moving them back and forth. He looked back up at the human when more noises came from her mouth.

“Is she talking? Hey, Kai, I think she's talking and, oh kelp! Kai, she's crying! I think you should stop.” Jorah said, lowering his spear, as he realized she was no real threat to them.

“Don't be ridiculous, it's just a survival tactic. My dad said humans run on pure instinct and were known for being clever with their escape tactics.” Kai said, running his hand up the inside of one of her tails and squeezing the soft, fleshy part closest to her body. “She's so soft and warm. You gotta feel her skin, Jorah.” Kai smiled, continuing to run his hand up and down her exposed flesh.

Jorah hesitated for a moment, before Kai held down her other non-tail and encouraged him to touch the soft flesh.

“Oh, wow! She is soft and warm. I always thought humans were cold and had rough skin, like a shark.” he said, his eyes wide with surprise. “Do you think she's this soft under her coverings?”

“Only one way to find out. Hold down her other tail, and help me get them off.”

Both mermen ignored the sounds of distress coming from the female in the floating craft as they began to pull at the coverings on the lower half of her body. Struggling when she began to frantically move her limbs, and try to pull them from their grasp.

“Hold her tighter, I'm just going to cut them off.” Kai said, grunting as she almost hit him in the head, when the other limb broke free from Jorah's hold.

“Sorry, she's stronger than I thought she'd be. Just be careful not to hurt her.” Jorah grunted as he struggled to keep the humans limbs restrained.

“I'm trying, but with the way she's moving, she's making it really hard not to cut her.” Kai said, pulling a knife from his belt and sliding it under the lower covering. As if she realized the potential danger, she stopped moving, her sobs became louder and more violent.

“Kai, I'm not so sure this is a good idea anymore. I've never seen an animal cry like that.” Jorah said, looking up at the human. Her body racked with sobs, as her hands covered her face. It was almost as if she was trying to hide herself from them.

“It's just a survival tactic, my dad used to tell me stories about humans and how clever they were, when I was a kid. Now, just hold her while I cut open the other side.” Kai smiled, once he had successfully cut through the material on one side, and quickly began to cut the other side.

He lifted the material once he had pulled it from her body, and inspected it, never having seen anything like it before.

“She must have marked it when she was fighting us. Oh man, you have got to smell this, it's disgusting.” Kai laughed as he held the material closer to Jorah, so he could smell it too.

“Oh, man, that's nasty. I wonder if it's something they do when they're afraid?”

“Probably, like an octopus or squid, when they ink.” Kai said, tossing the material to the opposite side of the craft. “Interesting, she's got another covering on. Oh wow, this is just as soft as her skin!” Kai touched it, surprised at it's softness, then gently cut the two sides, so he could pull it away as well. He handed it to Jorah, who was just as surprised at how soft it was.

“It does feel just like her skin, and what odd patterns it has. They almost look like anemones. What kind of animal do you think it came from?” Jorah asked.

“I don't know, but look at what it was covering.”

“Hair? I thought humans only had hair on their heads?” Jorah said, clearly confused by what he was seeing. He looked up to her face, when she tried to pull her legs closer together and back towards her body.

“I kinda wish I knew more about humans now. You think King Thor will let the scientists examine her? Maybe dissect her after the Dark Prince has killed her?” Kai said, pulling one of her legs away and running his other hand over the hair. “It's kinda coarse, but not as coarse as facial hair.”

“Kai, I really think you should stop. She obviously doesn't like what your doing, look at her.” Jorah's concern for the human was clear in the tone of his voice, causing Kai to look up at him, then up at the human.

He let out a heavy sigh, before saying, “Fine, but first, help me take her upper covering off. I want to see if what my dad said about their upper bodies looking just like ours, is true.”

“No, Kai, just leave her alone, already. I think she's distressed enough as it is.”

“When did you become such a mermitarian, Jorah? I never pegged you as kelp huger.” Kai chuckled as he struggled to pull both of the upper coverings from the human female. He noticed that her upper body didn't seem to have the strength her lower body had, making it much easier to remove the covering.

“Look at that.” Kai smiled, “Her upper body does look like a mermaid's. She's beautiful from the waist up and just as soft.” Kai couldn't stop himself from running his fingers along her newly exposed flesh. He held one of her hands down, when she tried to cover her breasts with it, allowing her only one arm to cover herself with.

Jorah couldn't stop staring. Kai was right, from the waist up, she was beautiful. She had no scaring, a few beauty marks here and there, but otherwise, her skin was flawless. He was unable to stop himself from touching her, even if he'd wanted to.

“She must be young, to have such unblemished skin. You don't think she's a juvenile, do you?” Jorah asked.

“I don't know, but she looks fully developed to me. Hold down her other arm, I want to get a better look at her.”

“Just what, exactly, do you two think you're doing?” Kai and Jorah whirled around to the voice behind them.

“Prince Loki!” Jorah gasped, surprised to see said prince in the water below them.

“We found this floating device on our patrol this morning. Sir, there's a human inside.” Kai said, lowering himself back into the water so he was level with the prince.

“Really.” It wasn't a question, so much as a statement, and the Dark Prince was always intimidating. 

“It's true, your majesty. Roan went to notify King Thor, we stayed behind to make sure it didn't drift to far.” Jorah said, already having lowered himself back into the ocean.

Loki could hear the little mortal crying inside her little boat. Her sobs infuriated him, but not with her, with the guards in front of him. They were doing something to her to cause her such distress. He had somehow felt her distress this morning, the ache in his chest tightening and getting painful. He tried to ignore it, but it only continued to get worse, until he left his home and swam to where some unknown force guided him.

“Why does it sound so distressed?” He asked, swimming closer and using his magic to raise himself high enough to see over the sides of her boat. What he saw caused his blood to boil. She lay there, naked, curled in on herself as she tried to hide her nakedness, sobbing and muttering in the language, for some reason, he so desperately wanted to understand.

“Is this how you found her?” Loki asked, trying to keep his voice level, knowing very well, that's not how he and Thor had left her last night.

“No sir, our curiosity got the better of us.” Jorah replied, he could hear the regret and shame in his own voice.

“Sir, she's not really distressed. It's a survival tactic, developed to get you to lower your guard so she can get away.” Kai said, no regret or sorrow in his tone as he watched Loki move to the other side of the craft, where the human lay.

“And how, exactly, do you know this?” Loki asked, glaring at her coverings that had been tossed to the opposite side of her boat. Her upper coverings looked intact, but her lower coverings appeared to have been cut off. Loki began to suspect they had other motives, besides curiosity, behind removing her coverings.

“My father told me, sir. He said humans were very clever, and had developed many tactics to get you to lower your guard so they could either attack you or escape.” Kai replied.

“Was your father a human researcher? Or had any dealings with them before the separation of the realms?” Loki asked, reaching down and brushing her hair behind her ear. When he left her, last night, she had it tied back. It bothered him when she recoiled from his touch and only curled tighter, mumbling something quietly to herself.

Confused, Kai answered with a, “No, sir.” Watching Loki move to where her coverings were.

“Then was he a human hunter?” Loki asked as he grabbed her upper covering and moved back over to her.

Again, a negative answer. Loki set the covering on the side of the craft and reached for the human.

“Did your father have any kind of contact with humans?” Both Kai and Jorah could hear the anger in Loki's voice. Loki grabbed one of her wrists, pulling it away from her face, his other hand gently maneuvered under her chin and lifted, so she was looking up at him. It made his chest burn and ache, seeing her look so miserable. Her eyes red and bloodshot, her cheeks stained with tears, her lip bleeding slightly, Loki assumed she had bit it to hard in her struggle against the guards.

“No, sir, he didn't.” Kai replied, cautiously.

Loki didn't smile when the girl looked at him, how could he, when all that looked back at him was fear and panic. He could even smell it on her. It lessened when he handed her the coverings the guards had removed. She gave him a small somber, grateful smile as she carefully took it and Loki saw how her hand shook as she reached for the garments.

“Then what makes him such an expert on human behavior?” Loki growled as he turned his attention back to Kai. His menacing aura, almost too much for Kai to handle. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his little human, sit up, and reach for something else near her cut coverings, keeping her back to the guards the entire time.

“I don't know, sir. I just assumed, that since he was alive before the separation, and he had so many human stories.......” Kai tried to stay calm, but the anger radiating from the Dark Prince made that very difficult for him.

“Human stories? Do you like human stories?” Loki hissed, lowering himself back into the water, closing the space between him and Kai.

“Perhaps you would like to hear some of my human stories.” He hissed,” Stories about how weak they are, how easily they can be pulled apart, how long it takes to suffocate them below the waves. Watching them struggle to swim to the surface, their fear and panic filling the water with the foulest scents. I could tell you many stories on just how weak and defenseless the humans really are.”

“Brother. What's going on?” Thor asked, breaking the surface and seeing the potential confrontation between Loki and one of his guards.

“That's what I was trying to find out.” Loki hissed, his eyes never leaving Kai.

“What happened?” Thor asked, looking at Jorah for answers.

Realizing Thor was talking to him, Jorah replied, “We were patrolling this morning,”

“Yes, I have already been informed of that. I mean, what happened to cause this situation?” Thor asked, looking at his brother, a look of concern on his face. He hadn't seen Loki this angry since the night they found their mother's corpse.

“Oh, right.” Jorah swallowed nervously, before answering, “We were curious about the human, and may have let our curiosity get the better of us.”

Thor's eyes went wide in fear as he looked up at the little human's boat. He expected to see her bright, smiling face peeking over the side, watching them, but she wasn't there. That's when he heard her little sobs escaping over the top of her craft as they made their way to his ears. Trying not to let his panic overwhelm him, he used the water to raise himself above the sides of her craft, only to see her curled up on the opposite side, facing away from them, her hands over her ears, her body shaking with her sobs. He quickly noticed that the chest covering she had been wearing last night, was now draped across her lower half and her lower coverings were next to her, appearing to have been cut off.

“Why is she like this!?” Thor demanded, fearing the worst. He saw her flinch at the boom of his voice, and he wanted nothing more than to be able to comfort her, to lift her spirits and hear her laugh as she did last night.

“Didn't you hear, brother? Their _curiosity_ got the better of them.” Loki sneered, still focusing on Kai.

“What were your intentions?” Thor asked, despite his attempt to stay calm, his anger still managing to seep through, as he lowered himself back into the water. Hoping the distance would muffle the sound a little and not distress his little human more than she already was.

“We just wanted to see what she looked like. To know if the things my father had told me were true, your majesty. We've never seen a human before and I didn't want the chance to go to waste before the scientists got a hold of her.” Kai answered, daring to look away from Loki.

“The scientists?” Thor asked.

“Yes, my father told me that, since the separation, whenever a human drifted to our realm, they were given to the scientists, for research and experiments.”

Thor and Loki looked at each other, concerned. As far as they knew, this was the first human to have drifted into their realm since the separation.

“That's not possible, she's the first human to enter our realm since the separation.” Thor answered.

“Um, that's not entirely true, your majesty.” This time, it was Roan who spoke.

“Explain, Captain.” Thor was finding it harder and harder to keep his anger in check, the more he heard from the trio of guards in front of him.

“When I was promoted, I was told that if we ever came across humans lost at sea, we were not to bother you with it. We were instructed to report it to the higher ups, who would then, inform the scientists and they would take care of it. I was told you had ordered this as standard protocol after the separation.” Roan said.

“I never gave any such order. How often does this happen?” Thor asked, beyond irate, that things were being hidden from him.

“I'm not sure, your majesty, but I know it's happened quite a bit in the past. However, this is the first incident I'm aware of in the last century.” Roan answered.

“This is most disturbing, brother.” Loki said, furrowing his brows, managing to keep his rage intact, over the news of such information. He raised himself up, so he could see inside the female's craft. She was on the opposite side, still curled in on herself, back facing him, as she covered her ears.

“Continue your patrol, but tell no one of this. If I hear anything about it, all three of you will be executed. Do I make myself clear!” Thor barked.

“Yes, your highness!” the three guards answered in unison, before quickly diving under the surface and swimming away as fast as they could.

Thor joined Loki once they had left.

“Do you think they had ill intentions?” Thor asked, his heart breaking at the emotional state of the precious human he had met the night before. “I should have stayed to protect her.” He said, allowing himself to slide into her small boat, and scoot closer to her, rubbing a hand over her shoulder. He tried to sooth her when she flinched under his touch.

“It's alright, my darling, little mortal. You're safe now.” He cooed as he carefully, pulled her into his lap.

He grabbed her hands and held them in one of his when she tried to fight against him. He only shushed her and gently placed his hand against her cheek. She opened her eyes and upon recognizing him, she threw her arms around his neck and began to cry into his shoulder, mumbling what, Thor could only guess.

“Please forgive them, little one. They are young and have never seen a human before. They meant you no harm and were only curious.” Thor spoke softly as he held her and stoked her hair, noticing that it wasn't tied back.

“You want her to forgive them for forcefully stripping her! Would you like to know where they were looking when I got here?” Loki asked, his anger quickly coming back. Thor's eyes went wide, then looked to where her bottom coverings had been tossed.

“Yes, _there._ They allowed her no shame, no dignity. Treating her as if she had no idea what they were doing to her. Tell me, _my king_ , what, exactly, do the educators teach our children about humans?”

Thor couldn't help but hold her tighter. The humiliation and fear she must have felt as the guards did what they wanted, just to quench their curious thirst. Not to mention how violated she must feel. Thor knew the purpose of what lie between her lower limbs, as did Loki. Their mother loved the romance stories that were told about humans and merfolk, so, when they were younger, she would often tell them her favorites as bed time stories.

Thor's attention was brought back to the human, when she lifted her head from his shoulder and wiped the tears from her eyes. He gave her a sympathetic smile as she began talking, he assumed she was thanking him for stopping what ever it was she thought they were going to do to her. Thor hated the thought of how far their curiosity would have taken them, if Loki hadn't reached her before him.

“Loki, we can't leave her drifting out here, all alone. Isn't there something in your spell books that we could use to help her?” Thor asked, a hopeful look on his face, as he looked to his brother for any possible solution.

“Not in mine, but, perhaps in my old mentor's books.” he sighed, knowing what Thor would say about him reading those books again.

“Brother, those books were destroyed, along with his cave.” Thor shook his head, looking back at the female in his arms and brushing the hair from her delicate face. He so desperately wanted to help her, just as he knew his mother would have wanted him to.

"I made copies during my time with him. They are hidden in my room.” Loki replied as he avoided meeting Thor's gaze. Knowing dark magic was forbidden, and yet, he still couldn't allow the knowledge to be lost forever. So he had hidden the copies he made and once he had read through all the magic books in the palace library, he retrieved them, one by one, and hid them in his home.

“Before you say anything, know that I've had these the entire time and not once, have I used them. Yes, I read them, looking for something that might break my curse, but they're useless to help me. Helpful to her, however, is another thing, entirely.” Loki's smirk made Thor slightly uncomfortable.

“I'm almost afraid to ask.” Thor sighed, looking back down at the human resting her head against his chest, her eyes closed, almost as if she had fallen asleep.

“I may have seen a spell or two on transformations.” Thor could almost see the twinkle in his brother's eyes, at the thought of performing such magics again.

“I don't think she would want that, Loki.” Thor sighed.

“It would only be temporary, until we could get her back to her own realm.”

“No, Loki. I won't allow you to perform such a spell, without her consent. Dark Magic always comes with a price and it's one I doubt she would be willing to pay. Look what it's cost us already!” Thor reminded.

“I am more than aware of the cost, lest you forget, it was Dark Magic that killed our mother and father.” He glared.

“That is why I won't allow such a spell to be cast."

“What if you could ask her?” Loki said, quirking an eyebrow, anxious for Thor's response.

"What?” he furrowed his brows in confusion.

“When I got home last night, I found a spell that will not only, allow her to understand us, but us to understand her as well.” Loki couldn't stop the smirk that spread across his face.

“It's not Dark Magic, is it?”

"This is one of mother's spells.” Thor couldn't stop his own smile from spreading across his face as he looked at the resting human. Just the thought of being able to understand her, was more than he could hope for.

“Should we wait for her to wake up?” Thor asked.

“Do you want to?” Loki replied. Thor thought for a moment, then nodded. Sure, he had countless questions for her, but after what his guards had just put her through, he figured they owed it to her to let her rest for now. She would wake soon enough, he could wait 'til then.

Loki sighed, then allowed himself to be lowered to the side of the humans craft and slide in, so he sat next to Thor. Thor smirked when he saw how Loki couldn't take his eyes of her. Stroking her hair, Thor looked down at her again.

“She seems so fragile like this, doesn't she?” Thor asked

“Yes. She's so small, are all human females this small?” Loki asked, cautiously allowing the fingers on his hand to brush her cheek. He was surprised how warm she was. He felt a tingle in his fingers as they brushed her skin and he swore, for just a brief moment, the colors surrounding her got brighter and more vibrant. But it must have been a trick, because as he continued to touch her, nothing else happened.

“I'm not sure, but I would assume so, since the females of most species tend to be smaller. I've never seen one this close before, or without their ridiculous courting coverings.” Thor chuckled, watching Loki sit back and lower his hand, yet still kept his eyes on the little mortal in his lap.

"Yes, I vaguely remember the female coverings resembling something of a jellyfish.”

“Minus the stinging tentacles.” Thor added.

“Yes, how does one expect to lure a possible mate if she can't sting him into submission?” Loki let a small chuckle escape his lips, still not unable to look away from the female. “Mother would know what to do to help her.” Loki sighed.

“You will too, brother, especially once we are able to understand her.” Thor smiled, returning his attention to the little mortal, one arm holding her just a little tighter against him, as the other now played with a strand of her hair.

Loki couldn't help the pang of jealousy that ran through him, watching Thor hold and caress what should rightfully be his, since he had found her first. But, given how he had left her to die, he knew he had no right to put any kind of claim on her. Not to mention, she was a sentient creature, with complex feelings and emotions, based on everything he'd seen so far. He was beginning to believe the things Laufey had told him about humans less and less, and believe more in what his mother had always told them about humans.

“Mother would be proud of you, Loki.” Thor hummed, looking again to his brother.

“For what?”

“Trying to help the little mortal.” Thor answered, offering a warm smile to his brother, to which Loki just scoffed, still unable to take his eyes off of her.

“I mean it, she would. I wasn't sure you would help her last night and even today, you saved her, in a sense.”

“I came across her first, yesterday.” Loki replied, in a rather somber tone. “I was on my way home, when I saw the shadow pass over me. I just thought it was a kelp patty that drifted into our realm for the human's. I was hoping their might be some crabs hiding in it.”

“And I hoped you planned on sharing those with me if there were.” Thor teased.

“Of course, you dolt, don't I always.” Loki grumbled.

“I don't know, _do_ you?"

“I do, but that's beside the point. The point is, I found her before you did. I could have helped her then, but I didn't and was just going to leave her drifting about. She jumped in the water, trying to swim after me, stupid mortal. I don't know why, I followed her back to the surface, but the entire time, she wouldn't stop talking. Even as she chased me under the water, she was still trying to talk. I thought she was going to drown, she must have realized she couldn't breath under the water and swam back to the surface.”

“She can swim?” Thor asked, more than a little surprised. “I thought they couldn't swim?"

“So did I, otherwise, why would they die so easily in the waves. But, you should have seen her brother, she swam like she was one of us. She moved the lower half of her body as if it was a tail, they moved together, not separately like all those I've seen drown. It was quite graceful actually, at least, it was until she turned around and started for the surface.”

“I would have liked to have seen that. I've never seen a human swim before, they've always just flailed about in the water.”

“When I reached the surface, she was still talking, didn't even realize her ship had drifted away. I turned her around so she could see how far off it was and when she started swimming for it, I left. I didn't care if she reached it or not. I just wanted to get home to my books.”

“You were going to let her die?” Thor was astonished to hear such a confession from his brother. Honestly, he was surprised his brother had chosen to remain in his company. They hadn't talked like this since before their mother's death. As sad as it made him to hear his brother was content to just let the little female die, he was happy they were talking. He'd missed his brother, more than he's ever admitted to anyone, even himself. He was sure, that when their father had cursed Loki, he would be lost to them forever. Yet, here he was, confessing how he was just going to let the mortal die. Alone. Adrift in the middle of the ocean, with no chance of ever being rescued by her people.

“I was.” he sighed, choosing not to tell Thor about the intense, searing pain he had felt in his chest, nor about the light that had emanated from it.

“What matters, is that you're here now and that you came back. You didn't have to, but you did and you've helped her, more than once.” Thor smiled, releasing his hold on the female and placing his hand on Loki's shoulder. The female shuddered and tried to bury her face more into Thor's chest, so he quickly wrapped his arm back around her.

“What do you think the Land above the Waves is like now?” Loki hummed, resting his head back on the side of her little ship.

“I don't know, but they must have progressed much, to build such tiny little ships."

“But it has no sails and no oars. How do they expect to get around in the ocean like that? It would take to long to rely on the currents to carry them anywhere. Do you think they no longer have the need for food?” Loki asked.

“Doubtful, since she does have a mouth full of teeth.” Thor smirked.

“Do you think she was separated from her pod, somehow, and this thing is just to keep her alive long enough for them to find her?”

“It would explain why there are no sails or oars, but it will do her no good here, they will never find her and even if they did, they would be trapped here until they all perished.”

“What I would really like to know, is why the guard had been told not to notify you of when a human is found adrift in our realm. What exactly have the scientists done to those who have found their way into our realm?”

“That is something I would also, very much like an answer to, and will get an answer to when we get back to the palace. But, I'm afraid we can't risk leaving her alone, if we do, we may never see her again and there is much I would like to ask her.” Thor said, his anger rising at the memory of finding out someone had given such an order in his name. “You will need to stay with her when I leave, brother.”

“I can cast an enchantment that will hide her and keep her anchored to this spot. I'm not letting you question them without me. They can not lie while in my presence.” Loki growled.

“Very well, then perhaps we should wake her now. The sun is getting hotter and we're starting to dry out.” Thor agreed.

“Very well, since you are the more gentle one, you can have the honor of waking her.” Loki smirked, hoping Thor might startle her and get hurt in some way.

Thor gave Loki a skeptical look, then turned his attention back to the delicate looking human, still in his arms. Still noting how, during their entire conversation, Loki's eyes never left her face. There were even a few times he was sure, Loki had wanted to caress or touch her again, but restrained himself, as if afraid to show too much curiosity and fascination. Regardless of his attempts, Thor had noticed. After all, something hadn't peaked Loki's curiosity this much in centuries. Thor couldn't help but wonder if she had possibly been sent here to help his brother earn his forgiveness, and as much as he may want to act on his own attractions for the female, if it would save his brother, he would not interfere.

“Well, are you just going to continue staring at her, or are you actually going to wake her.” Loki asked, brow raised, finally looking up at Thor. Looking back at his brother, Thor couldn't help but notice, what appeared to be, a small blush gracing Loki's cheeks and he wondered what exactly Loki had to do for this spell that might cause him to blush so.

"Brother, are you....... _blushing_?” Thor couldn't resist the urge to tease his brother. It had been so long since they've had a companionable conversation and actually felt like brothers again.

“Of course not!” Loki's voice came out higher than he wanted, he cleared his throat and tired again, “Of course not, it's hot out here and just like you, I'm starting to dry out. Now will you just hurry and wake her up!” Loki tried to stay calm and hide how flustered he was, but with the thoughts of what he would have to do for the spell, he found it rather difficult to keep his composure.

Thor couldn't contain his laughter any longer and with the loud boom of his laugh and the shaking of his chest, the little mortal woke.

She sat up straight, eyes wide and hands on Thor's chest, as she let out a startled squeak. Thor could feel the adrenaline coursing through her, after being startled awake, her heart was beating quick and her breaths were more like pants. His laughter stopped, realizing he was the reason she had woke with such a start, a sheepish smile gracing his lips.

“I'm sorry, my little land siren. It wasn't my intention to wake you so suddenly. It's all right, just calm down.” He cooed, stroking her hair again and pressing her head against his chest. He felt her calm down as she nodded, with a rather impressive yawn. She rubbed her eyes, but still kept them closed.

“She's awake now brother.” Thor said softly, his smile now focused on his brother, who's focus, was again, on the female.

“Right.” Loki barely whispered, his heart was beating so fast and hard, he was sure it was trying to escape his body. He was nervous and excited and he couldn't understand why. He was just going to perform a spell. Just a simple spell that would allow them to understand her. It didn't matter that he would have to kiss her after saying the enchantment. He had kissed his fair share if mermaids throughout his lifetime, and plenty after the curse befell him. So why did the thought of kissing this one little mortal female, have him in such a state. He was Loki, the Dark Prince, he didn't feel like this, and _certainly,_ not over a human. But perhaps that's why he felt like this, because she _was_ human, a mortal, not of his race. What if she bit him, or he contracted some kind of mortal disease that would wipe out all of mer kind? He would be responsible for the extinction of his entire race.

 _Yes, that's all it is!_ , he tried to convince himself, _But, I am the Dark Prince, the most powerful of all sorcerers in the Land Beneath the Waves. I have no reason to fear such a defenseless mortal._

“Are you unable to perform the spell?” Thor had leaned closer to Loki and whispered in his ear, still in that teasing tone.

Loki swallowed the lump that was in his throat and, taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes to help calm himself. Opening his eyes, he leaned closer to her, placed his forefinger under her chin and lifted it, so that, when she opened her eyes, she would be looking into his. Her eyes fluttered open as his thumb caressed her cheek. She gave him a small smile as she recognized him.

“Forgive me, but this is the only way to perform the spell.” Loki whispered, gently placing his hands on either side of her face and lifting her head from Thor's chest. Placing his forehead against hers, closing his eyes again, he took another deep breath, and began to recite something in a language Thor was unfamiliar with. Then he did the last thing Thor could have ever expected. He kissed the little mortal, and not just a small peck on the lips.

When Loki's lips met hers, he felt something surge through him, then felt her try to pull away. He tightened his hold on her as he turned his head slightly, so his lips fit against hers with more ease. When he felt her relax into his touch and her lips begin to move with his, he let instinct guide him and let his tongue greet hers. As his lips moved against hers, one of his hands made it's way to the back of her head and into her hair, while the other made it's way down, to wrap around her waist and pull her closer to him. He couldn't stop the moan when he felt her arms wrap around his neck, pulling her even closer to him. Wanting to feel more of her against him, he leaned back until his back met the side of her boat, pulling her off Thor, so she was no straddling him. Feeling the exposed skin and heat radiating off her most intimate area, as it was so near his own, caused a heat to spread through out Loki's body. It was something he hadn't experienced in centuries, something he wasn't sure he had ever truly experienced, and it was consuming him. After being so cold for so long, his body felt like there was molten lava coursing through him, burning him from the inside as the pressure continued to build, until it could be allowed to erupt from his body.

Still letting his instinct guide him, Loki moved his mouth to her neck and began to kiss, nip and suck at her supple flesh. It was so different from a mermaid's, there were no gills, no breaks in the flesh. He almost began to purr when she arched her back, pressing her chest more against his as he nipped and sucked where her jaw met her neck. Her fingers carding through his hair, his nails raked down her back when one of her hands gripped his ebony locks and gave a gentle tug. She moaned when he brought one hand around to her chest and under her coverings, to fondle the soft tissue of her breasts. Her fingers tightening in his hair, even more.

Loki wasn't exactly sure what was happening, or what kind of counter spell she could have possibly cast on him. Either way, he didn't care. His blood was like liquid heat coursing through him and he was warmer than he had ever remembered being. If she was to consume him like this, he had no intentions of stopping her. He felt whole again.

That's when Thor decided enough was enough, he gave a loud cough, as if trying to clear his throat. Both of them stiffened, brought out of their lust filled haze, as the realization of what they were doing hit them. Still holding her against him, Loki glared at Thor, who only returned the glare with a mischievous smile, as he said,

_“Having a good time, brother?”_


	4. A magical language

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Did Loki's spell work? Has the language barrier been broken?
> 
> Only one way to find out!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy late Valentines day!! It's a super short chapter, I know.

_“Having a good time, brother?” ___

__Loki felt that all to familiar cold, emptiness consume him again, feeling as if an Orca had just charged into his chest, taking his breath away. He sat there, panting, drenched in a cold sweat as he glared at his brother. Wanting, more than anything, to recite one of the many dark spells he knew, cursing him._ _

__Feeling movement in his lap, Loki was reminded of the little mortal and looked at her as she gasped. He knew, in that instant, the spell had worked, and that was her reaction to realizing that she had understood Thor. She looked at Thor, her eyes, wide in surprise and the biggest smile, Loki was sure, he had ever seen on anyone. Loki was focused, wholly, on her. How bright her eyes were and the way they sparkled. How her skin was practically glowing, no longer the sickly pallor that he saw everything else in, rather, it had a bright, healthy radiance. Looking at her, with the sun shining behind her, gave an almost halo effect and he couldn't remember having ever, seen anything so beautiful in his entire life._ _

__“I..... I understood you.” she whispered, tears of joy, starting to form in her eyes._ _

__“Loki, you're magic never ceases to amaze me.” Thor smiled at the little human._ _

__“Magic?” She asked, her brows now furrowed in confusion, wiping the tears from eyes before they could fall._ _

__“How else do you think we can understand each other?” Thor chuckled, shaking his head, as if it was the most logical explanation ever._ _

__“But, magic........ it isn't real.” she said, still confused._ _

__“Then explain how I do this.” Thor smirked, waving his hand as a fountain of water shot up into the air, spiraling up, then down, circling her raft, before landing back in the ocean._ _

__“Um.......” she had to admit, she was at a loss for words, and wasn't exactly sure how to explain it._ _

__“See, magic!” Thor said, leaning closer to her, that smirk still on his face. She unconsciously, scooted closer to Loki, her body sliding against his, eliciting a quiet moan from him as he tightened his hold on her. A small surge of warmth, especially compared to what he felt earlier, passing through him again. He never wanted to let her go, never wanted to feel that cold and lifeless again. He wanted to keep her attached, absorb her into himself, so he would never feel that way again. Even just embracing her, as he was, was better than the cold and emptiness, he knows he's going to feel when she leaves his embrace. Even though it was nowhere near the intensity of what he felt earlier, it was better than nothing._ _

__“Oh!” she squeaked, finally realizing she was sitting on the other merman, and there was nothing separating her skin from his scales. His arms, still tightly wrapped around her waist, keeping her against him, his face pressed against her chest, still glaring at Thor._ _

__“Um.......” she wasn't sure what she should say or do, looking down at the merman, who seemed all to content on keeping his hold on her, a blush quickly spread across her cheeks. It was such a complete contrast to the way he had acted towards her yesterday, when he left her floating alone in the middle of the ocean, and left her to die._ _

__“Brother, are you going to keep hold of her forever?” Thor asked, noticing how Loki continued to keep his arms wrapped around her. His glare changing to that of a scowl, Loki reluctantly removed his hold from around human's waist and sat up, so his face was no longer pressed against her chest. He felt colder already and couldn't remember a time when he had hated Thor, more, than in that exact moment._ _

__“Sorry.” She whispered as she carefully removed herself from his body, doing her best to keep her covering wrapped around her waist._ _

__When the last part of her no longer touched him, the shock of all warmth, leaving Loki's body, was too much for him to bear. It felt as if his very heart and soul were being ripped from his body. The pain just as excruciating and intense as it was the day his father saved him from the death curse. He wanted to pull her back against him, feel the heat and happiness her touch sent coursing through his veins. To just feel anything again._ _

__The pain was so intense, Loki couldn't bring himself to move. Only scream. He was sure she was, somehow, punishing him for abandoning her. For leaving her adrift and all alone in the vastness of their ocean realm. For leaving her to die._ _

__The last thing Loki could remember, was thinking;_ _

_Just what kind of powerful sorceress is she?_


	5. Under her spell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We finally learn the name of our protagonist! And learn what put her in the path of our royal merman (sort of).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know of you'd consider this mostly filler or not, but not a lot happens, but more information is revealed.
> 
> Also, I was gonna wait to post this, but since the last one was so short, I decided to go ahead an upload it early!

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY BORTHTER?!” Thor screamed at the human, as he reached out for Loki and she scurried away to the other side of her raft.

“I didn't do anything!” She yelled, pressing herself against the wall of her raft as much as she could, to create as much space between her and the screaming merman on the other side. She tried to contain her tears, afraid of angering the larger merman even more. She didn't understand why he was screaming and contorting in pain. After all, what could possibly, cause someone to scream like that. She covered her ears, trying to block out the screams, but it did nothing to help. She could still hear them, as if they were in her head.

“What kind of evil sorceress are you!?” Thor demanded, once Loki's screaming had turned into little whimpers, materializing his trident from the ocean and pointing it at the human, ready to kill her if she caused Loki any more pain.

“I'm not a sorceress! I don't know what's wrong with him! I didn't do anything, I swear! I just want to go home.” She sobbed, the last part more a whisper, but Thor still heard it. He could also feel the fear and confusion rolling off her. Her terror surrounded them so thickly, he could taste it. He knew she had no idea what had happened to Loki, and knew it wasn't her that had caused it. Perhaps it was backlash from the spell he had performed.

Seeing that Loki was calming down and no longer whimpering or breathing hard, Thor turned his focus back to the human.

“I'm sorry.” he sighed, “I know it wasn't your fault. I was just so scared, hearing him scream like that.” Thor said, scooting himself closer and placing a hand on her shoulder. He pulled it back when she flinched and looked up him, that same look of fear in her eyes that he had seen after catching his guards touching her. He tried to use his magic to exude a sense of warmth and comfort, to help ease her fears.

“It's all right. I'm not going to hurt you and I'm sorry I yelled. I've just never seen my brother in that much pain and not being able to help him. Please, little mortal, forgive me. You've been through enough already, to have me adding to your fears.” Thor said, reaching out to her again, relieved that she didn't flinch and pull away from him again. He placed his hand on her shoulder and let the feeling of warmth and comfort flow from his hand into her, she started to calm down a little. He brought his hand to her cheek and wiped a tear, before running his fingers along her hairline, and placing a loose strand behind her ear. He brought his hand back to cup her cheek and with a gentle smile, he said, 

“I am King Thor and this is my brother, Prince Loki. I'm not sure exactly how, but you've drifted into our realm. Perhaps, you might be willing to tell us how you got here? After my brother wakes, of course, as I'm sure, he is most curious, as well. May I inquire as to your name, my little land siren?” Thor couldn't resist giving her a cheeky, little grin again and was delighted when she gave him a bashful smile of her own.

“Coraelina.” she answered, but it was more of a whisper, than anything.

“So I was right in calling you my little land siren. It's a beautiful and befitting name, for an even more beautiful siren.” Thor's smile only grew as he saw her cheeks turn bright red and could feel the fear dissipating from the air. True to siren legend, she had enchanted him until he forgot about his brother, at least, until he heard the groan behind him.

“Loki!” Thor smiled and rushed to his brother as quickly as he could, hearing Coraeline try to stifle her giggle as she watched him. He could only guess how ridiculous he looked, pulling himself across the floor of her raft, trying to get to his brother.

“Brother?” Loki muttered, still a little dazed from the effects of the intense pain he had felt.

“Are you all right now?” Thor asked.

“I think so.” Loki answered, his voice sounding stronger each time he spoke. He pressed one hand against his forehead, while he used the other to push himself up into more of a sitting position.

“Please don't scare me like that again, Loki.” Thor said, pulling Loki into a bone crushing hug.

“Let go of me, you oaf!” Loki hissed, pawing at Thor, trying to push him away. He stopped and his arms went limp, when he heard a sound so enchanting and magical, he was sure he had died and joined his mother and father in the afterlife, for nothing in the world of the living could ever sound like that. His eyes went wide and his breath caught when he looked across from him and saw the mortal female, smiling and covering her mouth, as if trying to keep the sound of her laughter all to herself. Loki couldn't help but think of how selfish and cruel the gesture was.

Thor looked at his brother, still trapped in his embrace, curious why he had stopped fighting. Seeing how mesmerized he was by the human female, made Thor smile and want to tease him even more.

“Her name is Coraelina.” Thor whispered into his brother's ear, an almost wicked grin on his face now.

“Coraelina.” Loki mumbled, he felt there was no other word more perfect than her name and saying it too loud in the presence of others, would be like casting a spell on them. Just like the one Thor had cast, when he whispered her name to Loki.

Hearing her name, the mortal female stopped her muffled laughter and made eye contact with Loki and it was if the spell he was under, had been broken. He came back to his senses and realizing he was still in Thor's hold, pushed him away as hard as he could, causing Thor to fall over laughing.

“Um, I prefer to go by Coral.” She said, rather bashfully and again, Loki forgot about his oafish brother laughing on the ground next to him. “You two are an odd pair of brothers.” she smiled, looking between them. Loki just wished she would never stop looking at him.

Now that Loki could understand her, he never wanted her to stop talking. Her voice was pure magic and the sweetest thing he had ever heard.

“I'm, uh..... I'm Prince Loki, er.... I mean, just Loki.” he stuttered, feeling like an utter fool, but glad to make a bigger fool of himself, if she would bite her lip and smile like that, all the time.

“I know, you're brother already introduced you, but it's nice to meet you, just Loki.” she said, offering her hand.

She was teasing him. Loki felt like all the oxygen had left his body. She was acting so familiar towards him, like they were longtime friends. He knew after they way he had abandoned her yesterday, he didn't deserve to be treated as such. Hearing a cough off to the side, he was reminded of Thor, and he couldn't stop the scowl that overtook his features, when he looked to his brother.

“It's nice to meet you as well, King Thor.” she said, offering him her hand, which Thor gladly accepted and turned it, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. Loki felt that familiar pang of jealousy, when he realized, she hadn't offered her hand to him. But, no, she had, he was just to lost in his thoughts to have noticed. Though, it was probably best he didn't touch her, especially after what happened the last time he touched her.

“Now that introductions are out of the way and we can finally understand one another, how did you get here?” Thor asked.

Loki's was, once again, completely focused on the female before him. Scowl gone, an eager look in his eye, as he waited for her to tell her story. He had to fight the urge to slide across the raft and be close to her. To hold her. Touch her. Anything to be close to her.

“I'm not entirely sure. My family had rented a boat to go explore the Bermuda Triangle for the day, see if all the hype was true, you know. Anyway, everything was fine and then this nasty storm just came out of nowhere, the seas were supposed to be calm all day. The weather report said it was supposed to calm and clear for the next three days. Guess they were sorely mistaken.” she scoffed. “Well, I had just finished helping the kids get their life vests back on and secured their lifelines, when this giant wave came out of nowhere and washed over the boat. I tried to hold on, but it felt like something had a hold of my legs and was pulling me into the water. Eventually, I lost hold of the railing, and into the water I went. I tried to swim back to the boat, but, again, something wrapped around my legs and pulled me out to sea. Then the storm cleared up and I couldn't see the boat anywhere. Luckily, this life raft seemed to have gotten dragged along with me, so I opened it up and got in. I've been adrift for quite a few days, a week, I think, but again, I got lucky and a crate of rations and water got swept away with me. I'm hoping a search and rescue will pick up the signal from the tracking beacon before I run out of water. Honestly though, I didn't think we were that far from any land mass and would have expected to see something by now! I mean, it's kinda hard to miss a big ugly orange raft, bobbing in the ocean.”

“You have a very odd way of speaking.” Loki said, proud that there was no stuttering this time.

“Says the merman to the human.” She smirked.

And, oh, she was teasing him again! He hoped Thor didn't notice the pink dusting of his cheeks, he was sure was there. But, of course, he did.

“So, your lower limbs, you call those legs?” Thor asked, reaching out to grab one and run his hand up and down it. He was going to more than enjoy using the mortal to tormenting Loki.

“All right, King Handsy, stop getting so fresh!” she squeaked, slapping his hand away. “Just because you got a kiss last night, doesn't give you the right go handling me anyway you want. Not like those three earlier.” she shuddered at the memory and Thor quickly dropped her leg.

“My apologies, it was not my intention to remind you of such a foul event. Let me apologize on behave of my guard, they have never seen a human before, and were only curious about you.”

“Need I remind you, Thor, of what they could have done to her, had I not arrived when I did.” Loki growled, turning his attention to Thor.

“I am aware, Loki, and it's no excuse, they will be punished accordingly. Which reminds me, there are a few mattes which require my immediate attention.” Thor said, his smile falling as he remembered that, an unknown someone, had given an order on his behalf.

“You're leaving?” Coral asked, grabbing his hand before he could slide over the edge of her raft and back into the ocean. Thor looked at her and his heart nearly broke, the fear in her eyes was back, and he could again, smell it emanating from her.

“Loki will stay with you and keep you safe until I return.” Thor gave her that same gentle, comforting smile as he held her hand between his.

“I said I was going with you, you will not question the scientists without me. I will cast an enchantment, hiding her from all but us and stop her from drifting any further.” Loki argued.

“Please, don't leave me alone! What if your magic doesn't work, and those guys come back to finish, whatever it was they were going to do earlier.” Loki refused to look at Coral, because, he knew if he did, is resolve would break, and he wouldn't be able to leave her. He could feel the panic and fear, emanating from her. Hear it in her voice, it was almost enough to keep him with her. He tried holding his breath, so he wouldn't be able to smell her distress, but he could only hold it for so long.

“Loki, please, stay with her. I will not question the scientists without you. You have my word. Once we have someplace safe to hide her, then we will go to the scientists, together. I promise.” Thor pleaded. He knew Loki wanted answers just as much as he did, but he also knew, leaving the mortal alone, could cause her to distrust them, when all they wanted to do was help her. It could also invite another assault against her, innocent intentions or not, and Thor was not going to let that happen again.

“And where do you suggest we hide her? There are no land masses in our realm, she can't breath under water. Thor, there is no where to hide her.” That's when Loki remembered what he had offered earlier, and lowered his voice, almost to a whisper as he said, “Unless you let me perform a transformation spell on her. Then we can hide her in plain sight and we don't have to worry about someone finding her floating here.”

“No! Absolutely not! I told you, no dark magic! The price is too high and not worth it. Please Loki,” Thor pleaded, “just stay with her for now. I know you can feel her distress just as much as I can. She needs someone to stay with her, and right now, that someone is you.”

“So, you'll stay?” Coral asked, giving Loki a hopeful look.

Thor knew Loki had given in when he sighed and looked at Coral. He gave in and nodded, seeming to have forgotten Thor was even there, when Coral smiled and thanked him.

“Coral, do not let him convince you to perform any spells on you, especially any transformation spells. No, don't let him perform any magic until I get back, it will be safer that way.” Thor felt as if he was giving a warning to a couple of mischievous children. Though he didn't know Coral that well, he was sure, given the chance, she could be as big of a trouble maker as Loki was, during his youth.

“You got it, your majesty!” she said in a mockingly stern voice, while saluting him. He chuckled and shook his head, she was an interesting creature, then, he lowered himself back into the ocean and swam for the palace.

On his way back to the palace, he couldn't help but think about Loki and Coral. There was something between them. He could sense it, and, if he could, he knew Loki definitely could. However, he was pretty sure, Coral was completely unaware of it. Whatever the connection was, it was strong, and possibly very old magic. Thor knew it was the only way to explain the Loki's behavior around her.

Thor knew his brother better than anyone and the way he acted around Coral, was definitely uncharacteristic. He was never that quiet, nor did he stare that much at anyone. Sure he glared and scowled, but the way he looked at her, was definitely not normal. Then there was the kiss and the embrace. Thor had never seen any mer kiss like that and how eager Loki was, to kiss as much of her as he could. If he hadn't stopped it, Thor couldn't help but wonder what else it would have led to. The pure, unadulterated lust that had been rolling off Loki, was so heavy, it had started to affect him. He was positive, that if he had let them continue, he would have been overtaken by the feeling, and taken Coral for himself.

Then there was the fact that Loki had been projecting the sensation of lust, let alone feeling it. From what their father had told him of the curse, Loki would feel nothing but hallow and empty. He would be empty and cold, incapable of feeling any positive emotion, let alone lust. But, lust wasn't the only thing Thor sensed from Loki. There had been a heat radiating from the pair, the likes of which Thor had never felt. He was also pretty sure he had felt happiness, mixed in with everything else.

According to Odin, Loki should not be able to experience any of those feelings. He was meant to suffer until those he had wronged, had forgiven him. Could Coral's appearance in their realm, be Loki's chance at forgiveness? Could helping her get back to her family, be the chance at redemption, Loki needs to make himself whole again?

If he told Loki all this, would it ruin his chances?

Yes, it would.

If Loki knew she was his chance at forgiveness and redemption, anything he did to help her, would only look as if he was trying to get the rest of his soul back. Thor couldn't take that chance. He would have to keep this to himself and help guide Loki in the right direction. Thor was positive that if Loki could succeed in reuniting her with her family, then it would be sure to break his curse!

Thor was more eager than ever, to finish what he needed to do at the palace and get back to Loki and Coral.


	6. Getting to know you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Coral and Loki get to know each other a little more.

Coral couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with Loki, after all, he was just staring at her. It wouldn't be so bad if he would look at other stuff, or ask her about some of the things in her raft. No, all he did was sit there, and stare.

Intensely.

It was very unnerving and she couldn't take it any longer!

“Ok, seriously, can you _please_ stop staring at me! You're really starting to creep me out! I mean, I don't know if it's a mermaid culture thing or what, but where I come from, it's very rude to just stare at someone like that.”

Loki flinched at her clipped tone, and looked down at the floor of the raft. He couldn't help but stare at her, she was, quite literally, the most vibrant thing he's seen in centuries! Her hair was the most beautiful shade of brown, not a bland dark gray, like everyone else's. Her skin was such a lovely rosy-peach hue, just barely starting to show the effects of having been kissed by the sun. It was such a striking contrast to the sickly shade if green he was used to using to. But it was her eyes that he found the most difficulty with, when it came to not staring, for he was certain, that within those depths, she held the entire ocean. He was sure, that if she would let him look close enough, he would see a multitude of sea life swimming there.

Even the materials she used to cover herself with, were affected by her vibrancy, as did anything she held in her hands. He wanted to place his hand in hers and see if the pallor of his own skin would change. Something in his gut told him, it wouldn't. Not yet at least.

He did feel guilty for just staring at her, though. It wasn't his intention to make her feel so uncomfortable, he was just so afraid, that if he took his eyes of her, even for the briefest moment, she would disappear and take all her warmth with her. Then he realized, he'd better say something before he makes the situation even more awkward than it already was.

“My apologies, it wasn't my intention to make you feel such discomfort. It's just...... it's been a very, very long time since I've seen a human and I do believe, you are the first human female I have ever seen. This is also the closest I've ever been to a........... a living human.”

She jerked her head up and gave him a questioning look. She wasn't sure if she should fear for her life or not, though, she did feel pretty confident that he had no intentions of hurting her. Especially not after they way he had kissed her and refused to let her go. Which, now that she was thinking about it, also made her feel even more uncomfortable around him. At least with Thor, she knew he was flirty. She wasn't sure if Loki wanted her dead, alive, or didn't care either way. He was more than a little perplexing.

Loki could see the question in her eyes and before she could ask it out loud, he decided to answer for her.

“In the past, when I've come across a human, they've already drowned and are beyond saving, but that was centuries ago. We don't encounter humans nearly as often as we used to.”

“Wait, did you just say, centuries ago? Dude, how old are you?” She asked, sitting up and looking at him more directly, her curiosity, clearly piqued.

Loki gave her a sheepish smile, while avoiding making direct eye contact with her, he didn't want to take the chance of not being able to look away and making her uncomfortable, again. Not now that she was showing some kind of interest in him.

“I'm honestly, not sure. One has a tendency to loose track after a thousand.”

“Holy shit! You're over a thousand years old! Wow, you look great for your age. You'll have to teach me your secrets, so I can look as good when I'm as old as you.” She grinned, that teasing tone in her voice, back. Loki felt like he had jellyfish fluttering about in his stomach. How, in all the oceans, was she able to make him feel this way?

Not wanting her to loose interest in him, Loki quickly tired to think of something to ask her.

“How old are you?”

“Quite a few centuries younger than you. I'm just a little over a quarter of a century.” she winked and Loki couldn't stop his blush, though he still avoided making direct eye contact with her. “Twenty-six, to be exact. So, how does this whole merman, mermaid thing work? I thought if you all dried out, you got legs and could blend in with regular people?”

Loki couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head at such a ridiculous notion.

“Who do you hear your mer-tales from?”

“The internet.” she shrugged.

“What is that?”

“Um, honestly, I'm not quite sure how to explain that, so we'll just go with ancient folklore.”

“Fair enough, for now. But I would like to hear what your ancient folklore says about my kind.” Now it was his turn to have his curiosity piqued. It had been so long since there had been anything new for him to learn about.

“I suppose it more or less depends on which country you're from, but the majority of them agree that mermaids are there to lure men to their death.”

“Not women?” Loki asked.

“Nope, since pretty much all the folklore, seem to agree that mermen don't exist. Which, given present company, is clearly, a crock of shit.” she grinned.

“I must admit, you do have quite the colorful vocabulary. I believe you would honor any crew you were to sail with.” He smiled.

“Awww, thanks, that's so sweet of you to say, though you haven't really heard anything, yet. It's even worse when I'm angry.” She couldn't help but return his smile.

“Then I shall do my best, not to make you angry. Such colorful language, should not pass through lips as sweet as yours.” Loki couldn't help the giddy feeling he got when he saw the look of surprise on her face and a healthy dusting of pink that started to creep up her cheeks. It was an even bigger confidence boost, when he realized, he had all but rendered her speechless.

“I'm curious about your coverings. What kind of creature are they made from and what do you call them?” Loki asked, deciding it was best to keep on the path of curiosity.

“Oh,” She said, looking down at what was left of her clothes. “well, we don't call them coverings, we call them clothes and they're not made from any creature, but a plant, it's called cotton, some are synthetic. This here,” she said, pointing the article covering her breasts, “is a bikini top, it's made from synthetic material and usually only worn for swimming and this,” she said, pointing to the piece wrapped around her waist. “was my t-shirt, but, since my shorts and bottoms are gone, I made the neck hole bigger and am wearing it like a skirt, instead. Hey, why don't you come sit under the shade with me, you're looking like a real fish out of water, over there.” she teased, when she saw him scowl at the mention of her ruined clothes. “I've got snacks and water.” she sang, holding up a bottle of water and one of the rations packets from the crate, that got drug out to sea with her.

Loki looked at her, not quite sure, if he should act on her invitation, and not because he didn't want to. He wanted to be closer to her more than anything, he wanted to pull her into his lap and continue kissing her like he had, earlier. Before, Thor had interrupted them. Loki was sure Thor had only interrupted because he was jealous, he wanted to be the one kissing her so intensely.

Then he remembered, Thor wasn't here, right now. He was away at the palace, taking care of a few matters, and there was no telling how long he could be. He could be gone for hours still, plenty of time for Loki to figure out how to initiate another kiss with her.

“You do not need to bribe me. I am more than happy to get out of the sun, and for the record, I am only half of a fish out of water.” He snarked back at her, as he, as gracefully as possible, made his way under her little covering. It wasn't any cooler, but being out of the direct sunlight, was nice. He was also grateful that she didn't laugh at him as he made his way over to her.

“So, how do you stay hydrated? Does your body absorb the moisture from the ocean, or do you have to actively swallow it?” Coral found herself asking after drinking about half of her bottle of water.

“I would assume my body absorbs it, well, aside from today, I do tend to spend all my time in the ocean.” He was enjoying how easy they were conversing, now.

“So, is freshwater weird for you, then? Have you ever swam up a river chasing a fish, or just out of curiosity?” she asked as she unwrapped her survival ration.

“Ever since my father separated our realm from yours, we no longer have access to fresh water, and I can't remember a time when I've ever been near a river. Most of my life has been spent in the deep sea.”

“What do you mean, by realms?” Coral asked before taking a bite of her ration. “Do you mean, like world, or dimension?” she didn't think anything about talking with her mouth, partially filled with food.

“Don't you humans know, it's rude to talk with your mouths full.” Loki teased, to which, she blushed.

“Sorry.” she said, after swallowing what was in her mouth.

“It's all right, I don't mind, Thor is guilty of doing the same thing.” to which they both chuckled. “But, I guess, the best way to describe a realm, would be a different world. Our realms were once one and the same, but, my father separated them about six hundred years ago.”

“Why'd he do that?”

“I've been told it's my fault. I wasn't always........ the nicest...... to mortals.” He said, looking away from her, ashamed of the actions, of his younger self.

“You mean, you used to kill people?” She asked, lowering her ration into her lap, staring at him, a little anxious to hear his answer. Loki could feel her anxiety rising, and to avoid answering her question directly, he just nodded his head.

“But...... you're not like that now..... right?” she asked, a little more hesitant than Loki would have liked.

“No. I've learned from my mistakes.” He hated how somber his voice sounded, just then.

“Oh, that's a relief. I was worried I might have to drown you with the rest of my fresh water supply.” and Loki couldn't believe how quick she was to go back to teasing him.

“You're not....... not afraid of me, then?” He asked, looking up at her, searching her features for any indication of a lie, or half truth. Instead, she just looked at him, with her big smile, eyes sparkling, as if she didn't have a worry in the world.

“Nope. Especially if it's been six hundred years since your last, 'incident'.” she said, whispering the last word. “And based on the way you kissed me earlier, if that's how you plan to kill me, then I shall gladly put my life in your hands.”

Loki didn't understand how she could joke about something as serious as their kiss. He was even more shocked that she had, so casually, brought it up. Nor could he fathom how she could so easily dismiss all the mortals he had killed in his younger days. He couldn't help, but sit there, eyes wide, mouth agape, as he stared at her in wonder.

“What, are you catching flies?” She snickered, placing her hand under Loki's jaw and pressing it closed. “Dad jokes.” she said, shaking her head.

“The fact that I've murdered hundred, possibly thousand of mortals, well, it doesn't bother you?” he asked, cautiously, once he had regained a little of his composure.

“Hey, you said it was six hundred years ago, if I was you, I'd probably go on a human killing spree, too. People back then were awful! Everything was destroy, conquer then obliterate any remaining tidbits. Honestly, I can't say I blame you. Hell, there are still times, I wish I could just go on a killing spree and purge the world of all the horrible people.” she shrugged. Again, Loki just stared at her wide eyed and mouth agape.

He was positive she was sent as a gift. One, he knew, he didn't deserve.

She looked at him and smiled as she put something on his tongue. He closed his mouth, and before he could take whatever it was out, he got a taste of it. It was sweet, rich, and almost creamy.

“It's chocolate from my ration packet. Pretty good, right?” Loki just nodded, not sure what else to do. But, oh, how he wanted to grab her face and kiss her again. He wanted to let his instincts take over and guide him when it came to the feelings she sent through him.

“Anything you ask of me, it's your's. I'm your's.” Loki said, more serious, than he's ever been in his entire life. She just looked at him and started laughing. He wasn't sure if he should be offended, or honored.

“Come on, Loki, it's just chocolate and shitty chocolate, at that. It's nothing worth giving your independence up, over.”

“No, not over the chocolate,” he said, shaking his head vigorously, “but I mean it, I'm your's. Ask anything of me and it's your's.”

“Loki, I think you might actually be suffering from a little heat stroke. Maybe you should get back in the water and cool off a little, ok?” Coral said, a look of worry, furrowing her brows as she placed her hand against his forehead and felt how warm he was.

“I feel fine.” Loki said, that intense look in his eyes, still focused on Coral, as he did his best to scoot himself closer and closer to her.

“Um, no, I'm pretty sure you're not, you're forehead is burning up. Please, Loki, just get back into the water and cool off.”

For every inch Loki got closer, Coral scooted away twice as far. Loki had managed to chase her out from under her tent and she was now sitting on the edge of the raft, ready to run to the other side, if Loki got any closer.

“Loki, you're really starting to worry me, please, just get in the water. I'm sure the water will help clear your head.” Coral was starting to panic, she just wanted to get away from Loki, and found herself wishing Thor would hurry back.

Loki saw that she was about to rush to the other side of the raft, and quickly reached for her, grabbing her ankle, causing her to loose balance and fall into the water. Worried, when she hadn't immediately resurfaced, Loki quickly dove in after her. Once in the water and having righted himself, he saw her swimming under the raft, towards the other side.

“What are you doing, Coral?” he asked, swimming after her and grabbing her around the waist. The feeling of warmth coursing through him, was almost instantaneous. Wanting to feel the intense heat from before and not even realizing she was trying to push him away, to get to the surface. Loki kept one arm around her waist, the other wrapped in her hair, then he pressed his lips against hers. He wasn't overwhelmed by the warmth he was expecting, frustrated, he tried to force his tongue into her mouth. Pulling away, ready to cast a spell to make her more compliant, he felt something hit him and pull Coral from his arms. He wanted to scream as the familiar cold, empty feeling consumed him once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any errors!
> 
> And as always, comments and constructive criticism, are always appreciated!!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	7. Feelings are weird

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Coral has a good chat with Thor.

_Pulling away, ready to cast a spell to make her more compliant, he felt something hit him and pull Coral from his arms. He wanted to scream as the familiar cold, empty feeling consumed him once again. ___

__

__Righting himself, he looked to where Coral's raft was floating, expecting to see her waiting to embrace him once again. Instead, he saw the familiar dark blue and silver of his brother's tail. Furious, over what he assumed, was an act of jealousy by Thor, Loki swam over and broke the surface._ _

__The sputter, coughing and gasping of air, was not what he was expecting to hear._ _

__“Loki! What did you think you were doing?” The tone of Thor's voice was beyond furious, but Loki didn't understand why. He hadn't done anything wrong, had he?_ _

__“You almost drowned her! Why didn't you let her surface?” he demanded._ _

__“What? No. We were kissing. Th-th-that's all.” Loki said, using the water to raise himself up to see inside Coral's raft. What he saw, made him feel even colder, than after separating from their first kiss._ _

__Coral was coughing up water and gasping for air as she tried to stop her crying. Thor was rubbing her back, encouraging her to cough all the water out._ _

__“You're lucky I got here when I did, any longer and you would have killed her! She's a human Loki, not a mer! She has lungs and needs to breathe air! She can't get it from the water like we do!” Loki felt as if he was being scolded like a child, though, giving his recent actions, perhaps a scolding is exactly what he needed._ _

__“Is she, alright?” Loki whispered, looking down at the woman laying across the bottom of her raft, a heavy sadness hanging over his chest, watching Coral breathing heavily, as she tried to catch her breath._ _

__“It looks like she's going to be fine, but, I think it's best if, maybe you leave for now. Go talk to Tony and the other scientists, find out what you can and let me know what you find.” Thor sighed, allowing himself to slide into the raft next to Coral._ _

__“Coral, are you alright?” Thor asked, trying to help her sit up, keeping her back to Loki, not wanting her to see him. “Go, I'll stay here and when you get back, we can discuss how we're going to help her get home.”_ _

__At the mention of Coral going home, Loki felt as if his entire life force was being sucked from his body. The thought of her going back to the mortal realm, was too much for him to bear. If she went back, he'd be stuck with the empty, hollow feeling forever. He couldn't let that happen, had to make Thor see, that keeping her in their realm was for the best. Maybe if he performed one of the transformation spells, when Thor wasn't around, turned her into a mer before he could be stopped, then Thor would have to let her stay._ _

__Looking up and seeing Loki still hovering, staring at Coral with a lost and desolate look in his eye, Thor was pretty sure he knew what Loki was thinking._ _

__“Loki, you're not going to transform her! If I have to put a guard on her, at all times, I won't hesitate to do it. She's not a pet and she doesn't belong here with us. We have to find a way to send her home, she belongs with the mortals. Now go, talk to Tony and find out why someone gave that order, in my name.” Thor demanded, leaving no room for questioning._ _

__Barely hearing Thor's words, Loki nodded and made his way back to the palace._ _

__“Is he gone?” Coral asked, her voice still a little raspy from all the coughing._ _

__“He's gone. What happened? Why did he attack you like that?” Thor asked, the stern tone he had taken with Loki, quickly melting away, becoming more soft and comforting, as he talked to Coral._ _

__“I don't know, we were just talking and then I gave him a piece of chocolate, the next thing I know, he's practically telling me he's mine and he'll do whatever I ask. It was getting pretty intense and when I tried to get away, he grabbed my foot and I ended up in the water. I was trying to swim to the back side of the raft, when he grabbed me and started kissing me. I tried pushing him away, but he was too strong, I couldn't. He wouldn't let me go,” the tears started forming again, but, she was able to keep herself from crying any more than that. “the water started coming in through my nose, I thought he was going to kill me.”_ _

__“I truly believe, my brother did not intend to harm you. He has not been himself, since he's met you. Do you think he wanted to hurt you?” Thor asked, not wanting to go into too much detail about Loki's predicament._ _

__“No,” she said, shaking her head, “but, he's just so intense! I've never met anyone like him before and he's kinda starting to scare me.”_ _

__Thor sighed, pulling Coral back, so she was next to him, leaning against the side of the raft. He was trying to think how he could explain Loki's actions, without giving anything away to her. He was worried that if she knew she was Loki's chance at forgiveness, it wouldn't work and he'd never be redeemed._ _

__“He scares me sometimes, too. Like when I saw him holding you, struggling under the water. I was worried I wouldn't be fast enough.” Thor sighed, letting his cheek rest on top of her head._ _

__All he wanted to do was protect her and help Loki become whole again. But, if Loki was going to attack her when they were alone, he wasn't sure how he'd be able to help either of them._ _

__“I'm glad you're a super, strong swimmer.” she said, he could hear the small smile in her voice. Coral picked at her fingernails for a few minutes, before asking, “Did you really mean what you said? About finding a way to send me home?”_ _

__“I did. There are gateways that open between our worlds, always fixed on this end, but it's random in your world. My biggest fear, is that the gateways are one way. Over the centuries, mortals have drifted into our realm, but we have never bothered to venture into yours. I'm not entirely sure where the gateway opens on this side. It's, also, entirely possible, the gateway that brought you here, has closed and moved. It would be very dangerous for you, if we sent you back and you ended up nowhere near the original gateway.” Thor sighed, letting his head fall back against the side of the raft, his tail stretched out in front of him. He was under the raft's sun tent, staring up at it, thinking about how he would know if the gate was the right one to send Coral through, or not. The last thing he wanted, was to send her to a part of the ocean where they wouldn't be looking for her. That would only ensure her death, and then he'd be better off letting Loki transform her and letting her stay. As much as he would love to see her become a permanent citizen, and stay, sending her home was the right thing to do. Feeling Coral's eyes on him, he turned to look at her._ _

__“You're the king, can't you just, magic a doorway, or whatever, with your magic king staff?” she asked, pointing at his trident, that lay next to him. He couldn't help but laugh at her choice of words, in regards to his trident._ _

__“It's a trident, and unfortunately, no. That is beyond my power. If Loki had been king, it might have been possible. I was trained as a warrior and not a sorcerer, Loki was the one trained as a sorcerer.” He was quickly finding himself agreeing with Loki. He too, wished their mother was there, she'd know exactly what to do._ _

__“So, he's the evil sea witch, trying to make up for the wrongs of his past?” Thor stared at her, astonished how quickly she came to that conclusion, especially with a minimal amount of information._ _

__Coral looked at him and laughed._ _

__“Now you look like a blond, beefy Loki, with your mouth hanging open and your eyes bugging out like that.”_ _

__“I'm sorry, but how did you come to that conclusion?” Thor found himself asking, once he had gathered his thoughts a little better._ _

__“Just based on some stuff Loki told me earlier.” she shrugged._ _

__“What did he tell you?” Thor was beginning to think his theory, on her being there to help save Loki was wrong. Maybe she was there to condemn him even more, and if that was the case, he needed to get her back to her own realm as fast as possible, or, worst case scenario, kill her._ _

__“He said that he'd killed hundreds, maybe thousands of humans, back in the day, but he doesn't kill them anymore, because, basically, he realized how wrong it was. So, I can only assume, he's trying to redeem himself by playing nice. Also, sorcerer is the same as sea witch, as far as I'm concerned. Ursula, he isn't, but close enough.” she smiled, though Thor couldn't help but notice, it seemed a little sadder than before he left. Not that he could blame her, his brother did almost drown her._ _

__“Who is this Ursula, and should I be worried about her?” Coral wasn't entirely sure if Thor was joking or serious, with his question. She decided to go with a little of both. So, once explaining who Ursula was, and her major part in The Little Mermaid, she and Thor, both just sat there, each lost in their own thoughts._ _

__Thor was the first to break the silence._ _

__“You mortals have merfolk all wrong. We don't fall in love with humans so recklessly, but if I'm being truthful, most merfolk, never experience any form of love.” Thor sighed, again, his thoughts drifting back to Loki._ _

__“That's really said, actually. Why is that?” she asked, looking at Thor, waiting for him to answer._ _

__“I don't know, no one does. We have a group of scientists and researchers dedicated to learning how one can truly experience love.” he said, picking up her hand, comparing it to his, and noticing the similarities._ _

__“I don't think love is something you can find through scientific means. If I had to compare it to anything, I'd say it's more like magic, than science.” she replied, watching Thor compare her hand to his._ _

__“Then, perhaps I should assign some of the palace sorcerers to start researching it?” Thor pondered, and Coral was surprised to see, that he seemed to be quite serious about the suggestion, she couldn't help but laugh._ _

__“I don't think love is one of those things you can research. You just have to wait and let it happen. Have you ever been in love?” Coral asked, assuming it would be pretty difficult for a king to find anyone who genuinely loves him._ _

__“I'm not sure. How would I know if I've ever been in love?” Thor asked, turning to look at Coral, letting her hand rest in his lap, still holding it. It was soft and warm, nothing like the hands of his people, and he liked how small it was in contrast to his._ _

__“I'm not a hundred percent sure, but I've been told, your stomach feels all fluttery, like you've got butterflies in it......”_ _

__“What are butterflies?”_ _

__“Bad analogy, um...... then, maybe it's more like you've got a bunch of baby fish swimming around in your stomach. I don't know, but it feels light and airy, but heavy at the same time. You're heart feels like it beats fast and slow at the same time. When you look at them, they take your breath away. When they smile, it's like looking in the sun. You could get lost staring into their eyes, you never want to be apart, and when you're together, you can never be close enough. Every waking moment is spent thinking about them, and when you sleep they fill your dreams. When you kiss, there are no words to describe it. I'm told, being in love, is the best feeling in the world.” She's laying on the bottom of her raft, staring up at the sky with a far away, dreamy expression on her face, as she tries to describe love._ _

__“Then, I think I am in love.” Thor's smile softens as he lay next to her, propped up on one elbow, and looks at her._ _

__“Oh yea, who's the lucky girl?” She looks up at him, with a big smile, curious what kind of mermaid he would fall in love with._ _

__“You, my beautiful land siren.” Thor says, softly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, watching, as her face turns bright red. “I would kiss you, but, I don't think you could handle it right now. You have already been through so much, since you arrived.”_ _

__All she can do, is silently agree with him._ _

__“Even though, nothing would make me happier, I don't wish to cause you any more duress.” He's cupping her chin in one hand and letting his thumb caress her cheek._ _

__“Thank you, Thor.” she said, very quietly, turning to look back up at the sky, a sudden urge to process this new bit of information._ _

__“It looks like I have troubled you, anyway. Why don't you tell me more of your world. What has happened to it in the last six hundred years.” Thor adjusted, so his head was now held up by his hand, he removed his other hand from her cheek, and went back to examining the hand he'd been looking at, before._ _

__Coral looked to Thor and smiled, grateful for the distraction. She could think and ponder over the royal brother's feelings for her later, and then, try to understand how both could be so infatuated or obsessed, or whatever it was, they were feeling for her, because there was no way it was love. Perhaps it was the novelty of her being human and new. Something they haven't seen in centuries, if she believed what they told her. Though, she did have to admit, mostly to herself, there did seem to be some sort of attraction to Loki. Even though he had almost drowned her, and left her adrift alone in the ocean, she couldn't help but wonder if he was ok._ _

__“Coral?” Thor asked, when she didn't respond._ _

__“Hmm, oh right, fairy tales.” she said, shaking her head, trying to remember what he'd asked her about. “Unfortunately, I don't really know the Brothers Grimm versions, but I know the Disney versions, so I'll just have to tell you those. Hope you don't mind sickeningly sweet, everyone gets what they want, stories.”_ _

__“My very favorite,” Thor smiled, deciding not to correct her about what he'd asked. Coral smiled back and proceeded to tell Thor all about Disney and their insistence, that every fairy tale have a happily ever after. He was all to eager to listen, relieved to see her smiling and talking so animatedly, as if she wasn't lost and stranded, in a world, covered by ocean._ _


End file.
